Carlos Alcaraz could become ‘impossible to beat’ once he realises he doesn’t always have to be ‘fancy’

Carlos Alcaraz showed that he has the defence of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic and he will only get better once he realises it helps to be “less fancy” in certain matches, according to Mats Wilander.

The 21-year-old Alcaraz won the battle of the rising stars as he defeated reigning Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to reach his maiden French Open final.

In the process, Alcaraz became the youngest player to reach a Grand Slam final on the three different surfaces as he won the 2022 US Open on hard court and followed it up with the Wimbledon title on grass in 2023.

The last-four encounter against Sinner ebbed and flowed with both trying to figure out not only their opponents but their own games as well.

Things clicked better on the day for Alcaraz – known for his flashy shots as he is comfortable sending down booming forehand winners and mixing it up with drop shots and lobs – as knew when to play conservative and when to go for the “fancy” stuff”.

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Seven-time Grand Slam winner Wilander told Eurosport : “I think once he realises he has to sometimes play like this in certain matches, fewer drop shots, less fancy, he’s going to be impossible to beat.

“Obviously he’s great when he’s aggressive and when he defends and to me today he showed he’s going to be as good as Roger, Rafa and Novak at defence.”

Former British No 1 Tim Henman was impressed by Alcaraz’s maturity and feels the Spaniard’s performance will give him a big boost for Sunday’s final against Alexander Zverev.

“He [Alcaraz] was playing someone who’s probably going to be his greatest rival playing on a massive stage like this – the atmosphere was incredible,” he said.

“There was so many twists and turns, ups and downs and you were waiting to see who was going to grab the match by the scruff of the neck.

“And the maturity of Alcaraz, there was never any panic he was waiting for his opportunities with variations, the heavy high spinning deep shots to the baseline and when he got the opportunity just crushing the ball so well, amazing performance. It sets him up incredibly well for the final.”

As for Sinner, he leaves Paris with the world No 1 ranking in his cap as he will replace Djokovic at the top.

But Wilander feels he needs to add a bit more muscle.

“I think Jannick Sinner is a work in progress only in the next 3-4 years maybe more – I think he can put on more muscle. He’s so smart he’ll realise you have to listen to your body. Roger Federer, did he ever sweat did he ever get tired, no.

Could he run farther than Rafa and Novak most probably not, but he learned how to listen to his body. I think today Alcaraz did that today better than Sinner.”

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