‘Jannik Sinner is world No 1 only because of the computer, but Carlos Alcaraz is better’
Tennis great Mats Wilander has claimed Carlos Alcaraz is “better” than Jannik Sinner as he argued the Italian is world No 1 “only because of the computer.”
The seven-time Grand Slam champion backed Alcaraz to win “many more” Majors due to his aggressive approach and assessed that the result of matches “always depends on his performance.”
Alcaraz claimed his third Grand Slam title at the 2024 French Open last week, where he defeated Alexander Zverev in a five-set championship match.
In the semi-finals at Roland Garros, Alcaraz came back from two sets to one down to overcome Sinner, taking his head-to-head record against his 22-year-old rival to 5-4.
Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal from the French Open after reaching the quarter-finals ensured Sinner would displace him to become the ATP world No 1 for the first time.
Alcaraz’s Paris victory also saw him overtake Djokovic, with the 21-year-old climbing from third to second when the ATP Rankings updated this week.
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Former world No 1 Wilander highlighted Alcaraz’s importance to tennis and declared that he gives the Spaniard the edge over his Italian rival.
“With the end of the Big Three, Carlos Alcaraz is a godsend for our sport. He can make tennis even more popular,” the Swede told L’Equipe.
“Alcaraz has shown that he does not have to play his best tennis to win. He will be able to win many more Slams thanks to his aggressive game and the great courage he shows in important points. The match result always depends on his performance.
“Sinner is world No 1 only because of the ‘computer’, but Alcaraz is better.”
After it was confirmed Djokovic would lose the No 1 ranking to Sinner, Wilander asserted that the Serbian remained the best player in the world.
“I know very well that Sinner has just had an exceptional first part of the season and that the computer is not lying,” he wrote in another recent L’Equipe column.
“But I also don’t forget that Novak remains the defending champion at the US Open and the Masters (ATP Finals), and that he was a finalist at Wimbledon a year ago. As long as he is there, for me, he remains the best.
“And we saw in his end of the match against Cerundolo that, even injured, when he goes into ‘Djoko mode’, he is almost unbeatable. In fact, he fell to second place in the world due to a health problem. Not on a defeat.”
