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While Saudi Arabia continues to entangle and threaten in the shadows —The Telegraph published this week an alleged offer of 1.9 billion euros to merge and reorganize the circuits, denied the next day in information published by The Guardian—, tennis has the consolation of the beautiful rivalry that is being built between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. The Spaniard and the Italian, two attractive contrasting models that lead to the same goal, will collide this Saturday (not before 9:30 p.m., Movistar+) in search of a place in the final of Indian Wells and with the second place in the world defended by the Murcian also at play. You already know: one is joy, creativity, the most hedonistic concept of the game, and the other is all method, precision, heavy ball, that cold and expressionless face on the court – very different off it – that comes to wring. That’s right, today Sinner is scary. Reasons are not lacking.
Without a doubt, he is now the undisputed man to beat, riding a streak of 16 consecutive victories this year — one away from matching the sequences of Pete Sampras, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in 1997, 2013 and 2018. , respectively—and without a single scratch yet. “He is humble, honest and intelligent. He advances with quick steps, but always balanced. He will win much, much more than me, and I would bet that this year he will rise to number one,” recently stated one of the icons of Italian tennis and Roland Garros champion in 1976, Adriano Panatta, also overwhelmed by the winning dynamics of Sinner. The old transalpine idol proudly displays a series of 16 duels without losing, but the relief of him, champion in January in Australia, has extended his to 19, taking into account that he closed last year with three more victories in the Davis Cup.
“Success has not changed me as a person, victory is a positive moment, but one that is experienced for a short period,” says the semifinalist, a calm and cerebral boy, discreet inside and outside the competitive environment. “I never thought I would become so strong. The good thing about this sport is that you can always set new goals, I feel like I can still improve a lot. There is always room in my head for a new challenge. Unbeatable? I’m not. I am simply prepared and I have worked very hard to be in this position,” he reflected these days, while praise continues to pour in from abroad. In the opinion of the Scot Andy Murray, for example, the bite that the Italian took in Melbourne is just an appetizer and he anticipates that he will win “many more grands”, given that “seeing how he hits the ball, he will achieve great results on all surfaces” .
The one from Dunblane, like so many other analysts, focuses on Sinner’s (22 years old) ability to adapt to all surfaces and also on his ease of changing registers. He impresses, above all, his speed of drawing and his determination. Only Alcaraz (20), probably, can follow in his wake today when it comes to setting up and connecting the shot, also in terms of aggressiveness. Because he doesn’t wait; He simply bites. And the sooner the better. This is according to a study carried out by the ATP that highlights Sinner’s decision to resolve the point in the first four shots.
Go after the rival
Based on a statistical analysis of his records during the Australian Open, held in January, the report establishes that in said tournament he settled 59% of the exchanges between 0 and 4 shots, above the second – from 5 to 8, a 24%—and the third band of the scale—from 9 upwards, 17%—. Against Djokovic and Medvedev, his rivals in the semifinals and final, he set the averages at 56%, 26% and 18%, and the success rate at 57%, 48% and 49%. Throughout the seven matches that led him to his first major title, the one from San Candido appropriated 57% of the points decided in less than four shots, 54% from 5 to 8 and 51% above the 9. In this way, the tennis coached by Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill rises into more than decisive territory, because tennis’s tendency to abbreviate the game continues to accentuate; Therefore, Sinner continues to expand in a space that will be even more definitive in the medium term.
“He’s on a roll, but at some point someone will stop him,” says Daniil Medvedev, quoted with Tommy Paul in the second semifinal, after the stellar duel. “He is the best in the world right now, without a doubt,” Alcaraz accepts, aware of his opponent’s wrist speed and his ability to run over in the initial phase of the rally. “I love watching him play, it will be hard. He’s playing incredible and he hasn’t asked yet. It will be a great challenge to know what level I am at now”, continues the one from El Palmar, who after suffering a good scare during the fight with Alexander Zverev – invasion of bees before the 6-3 and 6-1 (in 1h 28m) that allowed him to progress—he faces the challenge of challenges today. Champion in Melbourne and then in Rotterdam, the Italian’s confidence has skyrocketed and it is reflected in the scores; Heading into this Saturday’s fight – 4-3 in his favor in the previous ones – he has not given up any set and has resolved all the commitments in two sets.
“I respect all the players a lot, but I’m not afraid to face them. Most of the time I don’t wait to see what my opponent does. I like to go for them,” says Sinner, an AC Milan fan, lover of pizza and sushi and who turns to the series to escape. Prison Break, or the lyrics of rapper Eminem. In constant evolution since he appeared in the elite, 2018, in recent times he has reinforced the service and, when asked about Alcaraz, he does not skimp on praise. “It’s always fun to play with Carlos,” he transmits; “Now he will be studying what things to change to try to beat me, so I have to be ready. We usually offer good games. He beat me here, and then I did it in Miami. If he beats me now I will have to focus on the small details again, but this is positive. I guess this is what happened between the members of the Big Four [Federer, Djokovic, Nadla y Murray]; This is what we now try to replicate to see which of the young people is the best.”
SWIATEK, AT THE GRAPH LEVEL
The world number one, Iga Swiatek, beat Marta Kostyuk (6-2 and 6-1) this Friday and reached her second final in Indian Wells, where she triumphed two years ago. On her track, the player from Warsaw has only conceded 17 games and has once again shown that she is, along with Aryba Sabalenka, the most reliable competitor on the circuit.
At 22 years old, Swiatek has already managed to cross the barrier of 300 victories and with an 89.5% success rate, she equals the statistics of the German Steffi Graf in the Californian tournament. It will be her tenth WTA 1000 final and she aspires to her nineteenth WTA title, her second this year after the one she obtained in Doha.
Opposite will be the Greek Maria Sakkari, who defeated local Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-7(5) and 6-2 in a match that had to be interrupted twice due to rain. The Athenian, a finalist in the tournament two years ago, is one step away from the third title of her career after those in Rabat (2019) and Guadalajara (2023).
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