“The sinner will be Alcaraz’s biggest rival in the years to come”

Tony NadalRafa Nadal’s coach for most of his career, is one of the most powerful voices in the world of tennis and, in his regular column in El País, he analyzed the recent Jannik Sinner’s victory at the 2024 Australian Open.

The Italian recovered in a painful final at defeated Daniil Medvedev in five sets and lift his first Grand Slam trophy: “This great and significant step could change the landscape of tennis for years to come. Now he will be Alcaraz’s biggest rival for years to come“, the Balearic coach did not hesitate to prove.

To contextualize this phrase from Toni Nadal, we must remember that Jannik Sinner won his first Grand Slam at the Australian Open and confirmed as an alternative to Novak Djokovic at the top of world tennis after defeating Daniil Medvedev in a painful final that lifted him to Melbourne Park.

The Italian, who was able to take the step he was missing to confirm his career and follow in the footsteps of Carlos Alcaraz, has opened a new paradigm in the circuit after his victoryaccording to Toni Nadal.

Rafa’s uncle and former coach for 22 seasons analyzed the success of the transalpine tennis player and its consequences: “When a player’s shots are not enough to win, he has no other choice but to use tactics. But Medvedev He doesn’t even have a choice. The Italian’s power and precision completely destroyed him“.

“Although Sinner has long been considered (Carlos) Alcaraz’s most likely rival, He lacked a win that big to back him up.”, he stated.

Despite this, Toni Nadal initially did not have it all with Sinner, who saw him falter in the first two sets of the final against Medvedev.

“I started to think that Jannik would not be able to fight and overcome the nerves caused by such a rivalry, but when he released his anxiety, he started hitting the ball faster,” he said.

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