I think it is a perfect time to do this. The season officially over and we can take stock. Also, I have never looked at two players at the same time but these are rivals, trying to take the top spot. It's worth doing this to see who has the edge going forward over the next twelve months.
I will try to keep the categories relatively short. You can add your own views
Alcaraz Serve:
The jury is still out in my opinion. I have been watching Intuitive Tennis on YouTube and coach Nick claims Alcaraz has improved his serve this year.
Initially, we got excited by his Wimbledon final serving performance. Where he hit some serves around 135mph and recorded the fastest serve of the tournament. However, that has kind of worn off and people are not looking at his serve as a weapon. According to the ATP website, his serving stats are quite good but he’s only hit 254 aces.
I still think Alcaraz’s serve is not world class level. For a legitimate shotmaker, his serve is more Andre Agassi than Roger Federer.
Sinner serve:
The most improved shot in tennis? What a shot it’s becoming!
Break point down? Hits a big serve or ace. Recently starting to show off hitting aces on set points and match points. Not many players can do that, you hardly see it.
Andy Roddick said in 2021 Sinner’s serve lacks the "Sampras tail". Meaning the ball was going straight, and was not swinging away after pitching. He might not get the Sampras swing but his serve is definitely doing much more damage than before. His aces down the middle on the ad court are superb. It bends away from the opponent, which is old school. Most players stand further from the centre line and the ball angles into the forehand, not away from the forehand.
Sinner, by the way hit 527 aces this year.
Alcaraz return of serve:
This one is very interesting. Alcaraz’s return stats are always very good. He breaks a lot it seems. He won 32% of his return games this year. That is in the category of Djokovic, Nadal, Murray and, Agassi before that.
In Alcaraz’s case, his movement is probably the reason he breaks so often. Once he gets the ball in play, very difficult to put him away.
Sinner return of serve.
Sinner doesn’t seem to break as often as Alcaraz. In fact, this year he won 28% of return games won, which is very good. But that is not quite in the counterpuncher specialist baseliner catergory. That is more in the all court player who relies on their serve category. Federer’s whole career was 27%. Sampras and Becker 24%. Those guys rely on their serve first and foremost.
I wonder if Sinner will settle on that or if he will aim for the 30% benchmark? That would make him unbeatable. So far in his career, Sinner has yet to hit 30% return games won in any year
Incidentally, Sampras best return year was 1994 when he won 29% of his return games.
Like the all court players mentioned, Sinner is very good at getting returns deep and so he could dictate the rallies. He is different because he is a two hander, so no chipping returns for him. But today, I saw a backhand return down the line winner!
I want to see more of that! I love seeing backhand down the line return winners. A shot that disappeared from the game.
Alcaraz forehand
Coach Nick on Intuitive Tennis put his forehand in the top five greatest of all time. I responded by saying I think he’s gone too early. It is a great forehand no question. However, I am not getting the impression this year it is rock solid. During the hardcourt and indoor season it probably had a bit too much spin and loop and not enough penetration. My mind is drawn to spectacular moments. But what about the humdrum run of the mill stuff? That is probably more important than the spectacular moments. Humdrum makes a career.
Sinner forehand
Another shot which has come on leaps and bounds. The footwork is probably the most impressive thing. The way he is running around the backhand to hit forehands inside out then inside in is superb, as the opponent does not know what is coming next and hence is flat footed.
Like Medvedev, not a whole heap of topspin and he hits is relatively low over the net. It is what Medvedev could have been if Medvedev was willing to step in more often, instead of retreating to the back fence and trying to kill his body.
Alcaraz backhand
Alcaraz’s backhand is an okay shot. He can do great things with it from time to time, such as the backhand down the line. Also can take one hand off and slice well. But I never get the feeling it is one of the best backhands out there. I still recall vividly his resorting to moonballing last year in the Cincinnati final, which did not impress me at the time and I said it. He hasn’t hit moonballs since. I think Alcaraz can improve his backhand further.
Sinner backhand
Sinner is the taller man. With his backhand I think of Todd Martin, guys who can really step into it and “lean on the ball” as Leif Shiras would put it. Very solid shot and can switch play very well from going cross court to down the line.
Although when I watch Sinner play, another hardcourt specialist Kim Clijsters pops into my head. Mainly because sometimes you want to see him hit that slice backhand on a low ball. But so many two handers are not programmed to do that. It would add a different dimension to his game. I heard Mats Wilander became an even better player when he added the slice backhand to his two hander repertoire.
Alcaraz net game / transition
Alcaraz is one of the best around the net area. There is not much more to be said on that. Maybe he should consider going to net more often to finish points and conserve energy. His scurrying around all the time will not do him any favours once he gets near the 30 year old mark. That is a sure way to get to the knackers yard quick. Lleyton Hewitt comes to mind immediately. Alcaraz wants to be known as a great shotmaker. So he needs to transition from scurrying counterpuncher to aggressive puncher.
Sinner net game / transition
Nowhere near as accomplished as Alcaraz around the net. However, this is another area Sinner is improving quickly. Well, when I say quickly, I criticised him for a long time for not developing a transition game. However, with Darren Cahill’s guidance he is getting better. His technique on the forehand volley is very good now. He extends the arm out in front and applies slice. Something a lot of modern players seem incapable of doing (applying slice on volleys).
Both guys have a very good overhead, footwork as usual being the key.
Alacaraz movement
This is clearly one of his major strengths. It could be a situation where he over relies on it. In my mind’s eye, I am not seeing Alcaraz dismiss his opponents in double quick time (except Tsitsipas). Alcaraz with experience will have to become more efficient, to cut down on potential injuries.
Sinner movement
Like Alcaraz, Sinner has excellent movement. These are the two best movers on the tour by some margin (taking into account Djokovic’s inevitable decline and retirement).
Sinner has to be wary of his hip when he goes out wide to counter attack with those big crosscourt forehands. But his defence, this week was incredible.
Both Alcaraz and Sinner have incredible defence.
Summary:
Based on the factors I looked at, I think at this stage, Sinner is the player who is making more progress and has a more developed game.
Alcaraz is in a strange situation of having put himself in a vulnerable position. With all of his comments about quick hardcourts and indoor surfaces, it has made people focus on him more and ask the question, how much more development do you need to make if you want to get to number 1 and stay there?
I will try to keep the categories relatively short. You can add your own views
Alcaraz Serve:
The jury is still out in my opinion. I have been watching Intuitive Tennis on YouTube and coach Nick claims Alcaraz has improved his serve this year.
Initially, we got excited by his Wimbledon final serving performance. Where he hit some serves around 135mph and recorded the fastest serve of the tournament. However, that has kind of worn off and people are not looking at his serve as a weapon. According to the ATP website, his serving stats are quite good but he’s only hit 254 aces.
I still think Alcaraz’s serve is not world class level. For a legitimate shotmaker, his serve is more Andre Agassi than Roger Federer.
Sinner serve:
The most improved shot in tennis? What a shot it’s becoming!
Break point down? Hits a big serve or ace. Recently starting to show off hitting aces on set points and match points. Not many players can do that, you hardly see it.
Andy Roddick said in 2021 Sinner’s serve lacks the "Sampras tail". Meaning the ball was going straight, and was not swinging away after pitching. He might not get the Sampras swing but his serve is definitely doing much more damage than before. His aces down the middle on the ad court are superb. It bends away from the opponent, which is old school. Most players stand further from the centre line and the ball angles into the forehand, not away from the forehand.
Sinner, by the way hit 527 aces this year.
Alcaraz return of serve:
This one is very interesting. Alcaraz’s return stats are always very good. He breaks a lot it seems. He won 32% of his return games this year. That is in the category of Djokovic, Nadal, Murray and, Agassi before that.
In Alcaraz’s case, his movement is probably the reason he breaks so often. Once he gets the ball in play, very difficult to put him away.
Sinner return of serve.
Sinner doesn’t seem to break as often as Alcaraz. In fact, this year he won 28% of return games won, which is very good. But that is not quite in the counterpuncher specialist baseliner catergory. That is more in the all court player who relies on their serve category. Federer’s whole career was 27%. Sampras and Becker 24%. Those guys rely on their serve first and foremost.
I wonder if Sinner will settle on that or if he will aim for the 30% benchmark? That would make him unbeatable. So far in his career, Sinner has yet to hit 30% return games won in any year
Incidentally, Sampras best return year was 1994 when he won 29% of his return games.
Like the all court players mentioned, Sinner is very good at getting returns deep and so he could dictate the rallies. He is different because he is a two hander, so no chipping returns for him. But today, I saw a backhand return down the line winner!
I want to see more of that! I love seeing backhand down the line return winners. A shot that disappeared from the game.
Alcaraz forehand
Coach Nick on Intuitive Tennis put his forehand in the top five greatest of all time. I responded by saying I think he’s gone too early. It is a great forehand no question. However, I am not getting the impression this year it is rock solid. During the hardcourt and indoor season it probably had a bit too much spin and loop and not enough penetration. My mind is drawn to spectacular moments. But what about the humdrum run of the mill stuff? That is probably more important than the spectacular moments. Humdrum makes a career.
Sinner forehand
Another shot which has come on leaps and bounds. The footwork is probably the most impressive thing. The way he is running around the backhand to hit forehands inside out then inside in is superb, as the opponent does not know what is coming next and hence is flat footed.
Like Medvedev, not a whole heap of topspin and he hits is relatively low over the net. It is what Medvedev could have been if Medvedev was willing to step in more often, instead of retreating to the back fence and trying to kill his body.
Alcaraz backhand
Alcaraz’s backhand is an okay shot. He can do great things with it from time to time, such as the backhand down the line. Also can take one hand off and slice well. But I never get the feeling it is one of the best backhands out there. I still recall vividly his resorting to moonballing last year in the Cincinnati final, which did not impress me at the time and I said it. He hasn’t hit moonballs since. I think Alcaraz can improve his backhand further.
Sinner backhand
Sinner is the taller man. With his backhand I think of Todd Martin, guys who can really step into it and “lean on the ball” as Leif Shiras would put it. Very solid shot and can switch play very well from going cross court to down the line.
Although when I watch Sinner play, another hardcourt specialist Kim Clijsters pops into my head. Mainly because sometimes you want to see him hit that slice backhand on a low ball. But so many two handers are not programmed to do that. It would add a different dimension to his game. I heard Mats Wilander became an even better player when he added the slice backhand to his two hander repertoire.
Alcaraz net game / transition
Alcaraz is one of the best around the net area. There is not much more to be said on that. Maybe he should consider going to net more often to finish points and conserve energy. His scurrying around all the time will not do him any favours once he gets near the 30 year old mark. That is a sure way to get to the knackers yard quick. Lleyton Hewitt comes to mind immediately. Alcaraz wants to be known as a great shotmaker. So he needs to transition from scurrying counterpuncher to aggressive puncher.
Sinner net game / transition
Nowhere near as accomplished as Alcaraz around the net. However, this is another area Sinner is improving quickly. Well, when I say quickly, I criticised him for a long time for not developing a transition game. However, with Darren Cahill’s guidance he is getting better. His technique on the forehand volley is very good now. He extends the arm out in front and applies slice. Something a lot of modern players seem incapable of doing (applying slice on volleys).
Both guys have a very good overhead, footwork as usual being the key.
Alacaraz movement
This is clearly one of his major strengths. It could be a situation where he over relies on it. In my mind’s eye, I am not seeing Alcaraz dismiss his opponents in double quick time (except Tsitsipas). Alcaraz with experience will have to become more efficient, to cut down on potential injuries.
Sinner movement
Like Alcaraz, Sinner has excellent movement. These are the two best movers on the tour by some margin (taking into account Djokovic’s inevitable decline and retirement).
Sinner has to be wary of his hip when he goes out wide to counter attack with those big crosscourt forehands. But his defence, this week was incredible.
Both Alcaraz and Sinner have incredible defence.
Summary:
Based on the factors I looked at, I think at this stage, Sinner is the player who is making more progress and has a more developed game.
Alcaraz is in a strange situation of having put himself in a vulnerable position. With all of his comments about quick hardcourts and indoor surfaces, it has made people focus on him more and ask the question, how much more development do you need to make if you want to get to number 1 and stay there?
