Jannik Sinner’s latest loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open final will likely sting throughout the foreseeable future.
After all, the Italian’s performance did not match the lofty expectations we have become accustomed to as tennis fans.
As Andy Roddick identified, Sinner seriously struggled on serve, landing just 48 per cent of his first serves during the match.
This is far from the first time Sinner has lost to Alcaraz on the ATP Tour. In fact, Alcaraz leads their head-to-head record by 10 wins to five.
Of the seven ATP Tour finals the pair have contested, Alcaraz has won five.
The first that Sinner lost was contested almost one year ago: at the China Open.
Jannik Sinner’s reaction after losing the 2024 China Open to Carlos Alcaraz
In what is easily one of the best matches of this decade, Carlos Alcaraz triumphed over Jannik Sinner in the 2024 China Open final.
Over three hours had been played when Alcaraz and Sinner began their third set tiebreak. Sinner took a 3-0 lead, before Alcaraz rattled off seven outstanding points to capture the title.
Despite the agonising circumstances in which he lost, Sinner was full of praise for his opponent after the match.
As per the ATP Tour website, Sinner said: “I feel like it’s always great when we meet. We try to push ourselves and each other to the limits. He, for me, is a [reference] point of where I work.
“Also, today I saw a couple things where I need to get better. It’s not only him, there are also other players.
“It’s always nice to share the court with him. I feel like also the fans, they like it. Usually the matches are quite long, they’re physical, there are many turning points… It’s always nice.
“Feel privileged and honoured to share the court with him. As I said, we both tried to win. We tried to concentrate on every point.
“Having a great attitude on the court, that makes it happen that it’s a very interesting match always.”
Will Sinner be able to overturn his head-to-head record against Alcaraz?
After his Wimbledon heroics, Jannik Sinner would have been hoping to cement his place as the world’s best player in the US Open final.
However, it was not to be, and Sinner has relinquished his world number one spot in the process.
Alcaraz has twice as many victories against Sinner as the Italian does against the Spaniard. When placing yourself in the shoes of Jannik Sinner, this makes for a tricky reading.
However, stranger things have happened, and Sinner has plenty of time to turn things around. For example, Novak Djokovic won only four of his first 18 matches against Rafael Nadal, but ended up leading their head-to-head by the time of Nadal’s retirement.
