Mats Wilander warns Jannik Sinner: "He has to worry"

Jannik Sinner is clearly the number one favorite for the upcoming Roland Garros that is about to begin in Paris. The absence of Carlos Alcaraz, the defending champion and injured wrist, and the current gap from all other tennis players put the Blue in a prime position to win the last major title he still lacks.

Tennis legend Mats Wilanders, however, has warned Sinner that many have a chance of beating him in Paris, due to a particular condition. “I think the only thing that can prevent Jannik Sinner from winning in Paris are the other 127 players. Somehow, they have to agree and decide, ‘Even if I have to lose this match against Jannik, I have to push him to the limit of his physical capabilities,'” are the words to Eurosport.

The weather, which is expected to be very hot, could play against the South Tyrolean: “The only doubt I have about Jannik is this: if he were to string together three or four really difficult matches, if he was unlucky and faced the wrong opponent on a very hot day and the match went on for a long time, how would he recover for the next one? We have already seen his difficulties in Australia, despite the fact that the temperatures there are much higher.”

“I think the key to it all is physical in nature, that’s where he has to worry, because technically and tactically his level of tennis and his ability to execute different strokes are superior to others nowadays. If it’s a best-of-five set match, maybe someone can take it to the fourth, then someone else can take it to the fourth again, and so on. That’s the only option I see to stop his advance.”

According to Wilander, it could be Ruud and Medvedev themselves, and especially the Russian, who gave a hard time in Rome, who could put Sinner in trouble: “In an evening session in Paris he can be tricky, because the court is a little bit slower and his shots have little effect, almost no effect. They are heavy balls, and that can put Sinner in trouble.”