Wimbledon: Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz favourite at SW19? And what about Novak Djokovic? Mats Wilander gives verdict
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Published 29/06/2024 at 08:15 GMT
Are the generational winds of change finally sweeping through men's tennis? After Novak Djokovic strode to three Grand Slams in 2023, it's been a different story in 2024, with Jannik Sinner winning the Australian Open and then Carlos Alcaraz securing his first French Open earlier this month. Heading into Wimbledon, Eurosport's Mats Wilander gives his take on who can be considered the favourite.
Alcaraz, Djokovic and Sinner look good in Wimbledon training sessions
Carlos Alcaraz's momentous five-set final win over Novak Djokovic at last year's Wimbledon marks him out as the favourite for this year's SW19, reckons Mats Wilander.
Alcaraz staged a recovery from an arm injury to land his first French Open title earlier this month, in another boon to the Spaniard's confidence and development.
However, Alcaraz was knocked out of Queen's by Britain's rising star Jack Draper, and could face stiff competition in south-west London in the form of freshly installed world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
Wilander, ahead of Wimbledon starting on Monday, delved into how he sees the battle evolving between the two youngsters on the SW19 lawns.
"I think Alcaraz most probably comes in as the favourite because of what happened last year, beating Djokovic in five sets," Wilander told Eurosport's Arnold Montgault.
"And I think he already showed himself and the other players in the locker room and the rest of the world too after the clay court season, that winning the French Open shows that he doesn't necessarily need a lot of matches.
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French Open highlights - Sensational Alcaraz edges Sinner in rollercoaster semi-final
"He needs hours on a grass court, but I think with that, most probably, he's the slight favourite.
"But keep in mind that Sinner made the quarters [in 2022]. He made the semi-finals of Wimbledon already [in 2023, losing to Djokovic]. He won Halle now, so he knows how to win. He believes in himself.
"Going forward, looking into the future, it's going to be very hard to separate who's the favourite between Alcaraz and Sinner in any tournament, because I do think that what they've shown us so far in their career is if they're anywhere close to being healthy - and they will not play unless they're pretty close to being healthy - we're going to have to put them as the favourites in pretty much any tournament going forward.
"Of course, Djokovic is still there and when he's healthy, he's one of them. But to compare the two of them with the rest of the field, they're going to be the ones that are going to be the favourites if they show up and play, even at Wimbledon."
As ever with the condensed turnaround between the clay and grass seasons, adaptation will likely be key to whoever lifts the coveted Wimbledon trophy.
And Wilander namechecked one of Britain's leading lights as he evaluated the different type of styles that could cause problems to Sinner and Alcaraz respectively over the next fortnight - and beyond.
"I think Alcaraz might not be as dangerous against the big ball strikers as Sinner is," Wilander said.
"Sinner might struggle against the player who has feel, who can play, or even the style of Cameron Norrie, for example, who can hit a flat backhand that doesn't bounce very high and is outside of Sinner's strike zone.
"So any surface where Sinner doesn't get the ball in his strike zone creates more problems for him than for Alcaraz.
"I think Alcaraz will be better overall on different surfaces, and Sinner might struggle against certain opponents on different surfaces."
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