MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Maybe during that conversation in the tunnel before the start of their match at Indian Wells two weeks ago or while they were passing time in the locker room during the rain delay , Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz reached an agreement. to share the riches and spotlight of tennis for the next decade.
Surely there are enough trophies and prize money for both of us young men. It’s a long season. So how about one of us dominates a big tournament and the other wins the next?
Look, probably not, but that’s pretty much the story of the 2024 men’s tennis season so far. Sinner wins the Australian Open. Alcaraz wins the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, the so-called Fifth Slam. Sinner is now on the cusp of the next big title of the season. This is all very gracious and polite for the two young men most likely to dominate their sport for a while.
A day after Alcaraz walked off stage at the Miami Open in the quarterfinals on Thursday night, losing to Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets, Sinner played a near-perfect match against Daniil Medvedev, beating the Russian star 6- 1, 6-2 in just over a year. one hour.
Sinner will face Dimitrov in the final on Sunday. Dimitrov, who is ten years older than Sinner but playing some of the best tennis of his life, beat German Alexander Zverev on Friday night in three tight sets, in a game that has always been flashy but has acquired a new authority in recent months. .
For all those among the 14,000 fans who flocked to the temporary tennis facilities at Hard Rock Stadium hoping to see something like the five-set thriller played by Sinner and Medvedev at the Australian Open in January , Friday’s dust was a huge disappointment. What they got instead was a clinic, a tactical and athletic demonstration of how Sinner, ranked No. 4 in the world but probably not for long, transformed himself into the best player on the planet at over the last four months.
A year ago, Medvedev and Sinner played on that same hard, smooth court that Medvedev loves, in a final that played out like all their matches, with Medvedev winning quite comfortably and showing all the signs that this could be the one of those match problems that a player never understands. A year later, Sinner destroyed that notion by winning five straight against Medvedev, knocking out a player ranked one spot ahead of him with frightening efficiency.
Jannik has that Florida feeling ☀️🏖️
The moment @janniksin reached his fourth ATP Masters 1000 final! @MiamiOpen | #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/DlxbZpqXlw
-ATP Tour (@atptour) March 29, 2024
“I’m just trying to stay in my rhythm,” Sinner said as smoke still cleared from the stadium field.
Well, it worked. Medvedev can play much better than he did on Friday, when his balls so often lacked the zip that sent them flying across the court and his counterpunches lacked the precision that puts opponents on the defensive without realizing it. is where they are headed.
But part of that owes to Sinner. Medvedev started aggressively, trying to claim the baseline, push Sinner away and enter the court. It did not work. For a moment, Sinner was starting on Medvedev when the Russian tried to force things and even come to the net. The next, he was performing perfect topspin lobs with Medvedev, who is 6-foot-6 with long arms, feeling 5-2 and stocky.
When Medvedev sank and resorted to his human panel mode, Sinner matched him crosshand backhand for crosshand backhand. Probably most importantly, Sinner gave Medvedev few chances in his serve, which has become one of the most dangerous in the sport.
What has become clear over the past 10 days in Miami is that Sinner hasn’t been bothered by the one blemish on his record this season, the loss to Alcaraz in California. He immediately understood what was wrong that day. He said he became too predictable after winning the first set.
But soon he was back on track. And although he wasn’t perfect in Miami, playing a close three-set match against Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor in his second outing, he has since been in almost total control, regaining the belief that he will play too . like he needs every time he steps on the field.
Medvedev said that during his tour, only 20-year-old Alcaraz went from good to great so dramatically. But Alcaraz’s rise was quite different, winning his first Grand Slam title at the end of his second full year on tour.
Sinner, 22, has been a little slower to develop and even experienced a period of stagnation after an initial surge in 2020. Last year, however, he moved to another level, as Medvedev only knows Very good. A year ago, Medvedev was 6-0 against Sinner. Now he is 6-5 years old.
“He misses less, he chooses his shots more wisely, he serves 10 times better,” Medvedev said. “Jannik has always served well, but now he serves big, big.”
Every time Medvedev had a slight glimmer of hope on Friday, Sinner managed to fly away at around 130 mph and either cut a line or come awfully close. He knows why too. Eventually, after years of strength training, his frame matured and developed enough to serve with the big guys.
He’s also learned how to handle finals, the matches that players are supposed to treat like any other but know are just different from any kind of test. Three years ago, while playing in his first final in a tournament of this magnitude, just below Grand Slam level, Sinner said he had not been able to sleep the night before and had lost a day that seemed like a coming out. celebration for the highly touted Italian.
Last year, before the match in Miami against Medvedev, he was more relaxed but he was still learning how to deal with the last day of a tournament, when the locker room is big and lonely and you are the only singles match on the schedule. He now knows that success in the final can be as much about enjoying the moment as it is about a high percentage of first serves. Win or lose, you have reached the last day, Sunday, the best day for tennis players.
“This is the third time I can play in the final here in Miami, which is an incredible achievement for me personally, and I hope I can lift the biggest trophy once,” he said on Friday after- noon. “Otherwise, it was again a great result, a great opportunity, and that’s it.”
Indeed, it is.
He has had a lot of great opportunities and good results in recent months. He – and Alcaraz too – should have a lot more the rest of the year. That’s their plan anyway.
All that remains is to know how the material will be distributed.
(Photo by Jannik Sinner: Geoff Burke / USA Today)