Jannik Sinner’s Australian Open victory ‘could change the tennis landscape’ claims top coach
Jannik Sinner won his first Grand Slam title last Sunday, leading to Rafael Nadal’s uncle and former coach claiming that this victory confirmed that he would be Carlos Alcaraz’s ‘greatest rival’.
Sinner fought back from two sets down in the Australian Open final against Daniil Medvedev last week, becoming the first Italian in history to win the singles title in Melbourne.
And Toni Nadal, who is currently the coach of Felix Auger-Aliassime, revealed his fear after the conclusion of the tournament, “Once the match was over, I commented something else to my children and to my daughter, who had called us to comment on the Italian’s victory that had made such a great impression on her in the recent Davis Cup in Malaga.
“I fear that this great and significant step could change the tennis landscape in the coming years.”
Sinner has massively improved his head-to-head against top 10 players in recent months, having won 12 of his last 13 matches against players including Novak Djokovic, and the aforementioned Alcaraz and Medvedev.
These improvements to Sinner’s game have caused Toni Nadal to have a change in mindset about the 22-year-old, “Although Sinner had long been considered Carlos Alcaraz’s most likely rival, he lacked a victory of this magnitude to confirm it.
“[On Sunday] certain doubts that somewhat overshadowed his poise when playing high-tension matches were dispelled. There is little doubt that he has been the player with the greatest improvement in this last year. He has been able to defeat virtually everyone in the top 10, including Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.”
Toni Nadal concluded, “And without a doubt, also, the confirmation that he will be our tennis player’s [Alcaraz] greatest rival in the coming years. The most logical thing is to think that, from now on, the two of them will be the ones who will compete for supremacy on the world list.”
A special place to come home to, thank you for all the love ???????? ❤️
Un rientro molto speciale???? Grazie Roma! Grazie di cuore a tutti per l'affetto! ???????? pic.twitter.com/K4UDYzXhmD
— Jannik Sinner (@janniksin) January 31, 2024
Sinner is currently enjoying his victory in his home country, bringing the Australian Open title to the Italian capital of Rome, and is scheduled to next compete at the ATP 500 event in Rotterdam.
Inside the baseline…
Jannik Sinner has been the best player on the ATP Tour alongside Novak Djokovic since the US Open, and has actually beaten the world No.1 three times in that period. Most people already saw Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz headlining the sport for the next 10 years, alongside Holger Rune, so it is interesting that Toni Nadal needed to see this victory to 100% confirm that.
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