Sinner vs. Alcaraz in Rome

Match Breakdown

Rome Finale: Sinner vs. Alcaraz

Last week Jannik Sinner returned to the ATP Tour after serving a child’s timeout 90-day doping suspension. The Italian picked up right where he left off, crushing players and giving us the matchup we were hoping for in the final: Sinner vs. Alcaraz.

While the World No. 1 came back from PTO playing well, the Spaniard proved why he’s numero uno on the dirt, winning 7-6(5), 6-1 to claim his first title in Rome. How did he get the W? Let’s find out:

Attacking the Sinner second serve

Alcaraz made hitting second serves a nightmare for Jannik. The Spaniard consistently ripped second serve returns close to the baseline, forcing errors from the World No. 1 and putting pressure on his service games.

While he didn’t break in the first set, Carlitos steadily added more and more pressure onto the Italian’s service games until he finally cracked.

That moment came at 0-1 in the second set: Sinner double-faulted to start the game. It looked like a small mistake, but it was the opening Alcaraz had been engineering all match. He finally broke, and the match was over 15 minutes later. Sinner gave him an inch, and he took a mile.

Playing high over the net

Higher, heavier, and more margin—the second part of Alcaraz’ game plan. His rally balls averaged significantly more net clearance than on hard courts, and it had two effects.

For starters, the World No. 1 doesn’t know how to beat moon ballers.

Just kidding.

Alcaraz moved the ball out of Sinner’s strike zone, forcing him to hit chest- or shoulder-height balls that bounce higher on clay.

It also neutralized Sinner’s pace. Over 133 points, he hit just 6 groundstroke winners—extremely low for someone with as much power as he has.

By adding spin and height, Alcaraz didn’t just play safer—he played smarter. He let the surface do the work. Sinner had fewer clean looks and couldn’t hit through the Spaniard the way he can on faster courts.

Playing the big moments better

Don’t let the score fool you—Sinner 100% could have won this match. The Italian had two set points at 6-5, 40-15 in the first set. He missed a routine forehand return on the first. On the second, he sprayed a jumping backhand wide. Both were unforced errors that came at exactly the wrong time—a clear sign of rust that accrued during his time in the penalty box.

In contrast, Alcaraz was clutch. At 1-0 in the first set tiebreak, he hit back-to-back aces to take a 3-0 lead. Two of his four aces in the set, timed perfectly. He didn’t dominate from start to finish—but when it counted the most, he was the better player.

Looking ahead

Sinner is back—and he’s still unreal. But Carlos showed why he’s the best on the dirt. And with the win, he jumps back to No. 2 in the world, which means he and Sinner will be on opposite sides of the draw in Paris. Don’t be surprised when you’re watching them again three Sundays from now.

Trivia

This ATP player won at least one tour level tournament every year from 2001 - 2012. Who was it?

A. Nikolay Davydenko

B. Lleyton Hewitt

C. David Nalbandian

D. Andy Roddick

Find out at the bottom!

Meet the Player

Naomi Osaka

From: Japan 🇯🇵 

Career High Ranking: 1

Fun Fact: Formed her own sports agency in 2022, and signed Nick Kyrgios as her first client

Game Analysis: Like her colleagues at the top of the sport, Osaka spanks the ball off of both sides. But she has a secret weapon: disguise. With short back swings on both of her groundstrokes, it’s impossible to read where she’s going to hit the ball. So if you’re her opponent, that means you’re a half step late to the ball, which makes it challenging to hit the best ball back.

Career Prediction: At 27, Osaka has already had a hall-of-fame career. 4 slams—World No. 1—and a handful of other big titles. The Japanese player has had a strong return from maternity leave in 2024, and is solidly in the Top 50 now. I don’t think there’s another slam with her name on it, but it’s great to see her back in the mix. Definitely a good dark horse pick on hard courts.

Memes

The new Pope being a 3.16 UTR was not on my bingo card this year

Around the Net

Some of my favorite tennis content I found on the internet this week…

✋ Congrats to Wake Forest University (Men’s) and the University of Georgia (Women’s) for winning the NCAA DI titles! WF’s clinch is hype

🎥 POV: you’re the number one player in the world

💨 This poach out of nowhere is just bananas

Community Ask

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Answer

D. Andy Roddick