Jannik Sinner insists he has left behind his heartbreaking defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in the Roland Garros final.
In Paris one month ago, Sinner held three consecutive championship points in the fourth set before Alcaraz staged a mind-bending comeback to win a five-set thriller in five-and-a-half hours.
Sinner appeared shellshocked in the moments following the final but has rebounded brilliantly, powering into his first Wimbledon final thanks to a straight-sets defeat of Novak Djokovic.
It was the world No.1’s fifth straight win over the 24-time major winner, booking a final clash with an opponent against whom he’s lost his past four meetings.
Sinner will hope to reverse that trend when he meets two-time defending champion Alcaraz in Sunday’s final on Centre Court.
“I'm very happy to share once again the court with Carlos,” said Sinner, who trails their head-to-head series 4-8.
“It's going to be difficult, I know that. But I'm looking forward to it, no? I try always to put myself in these kind of situations what I really love.
“After Roland Garros I practised very hard, maybe more, to improve as a player. This is exactly regardless of what I do here on Sunday, if I win or lose."
In their four career meetings on the Grand Slam stage, Alcaraz has won the past three – each time in five sets.
However, in their first at Wimbledon in 2022 – their only previous Slam match on grass – Sinner triumphed in four sets in the fourth round.
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That was two months before Alcaraz broke through for his first major title at the 2022 US Open, another major at which he saved match point to overcome Sinner. He is now a five-time major champion, aiming to complete his second straight Roland Garros-Wimbledon double.
Sinner has risen to become a three-time major champion and this fortnight has been imperious on his march toward a first Slam title off hard courts.
Apart from a fourth-round blip where he trailed Grigor Dimitrov two-sets-to-love before the Bulgarian retired due to injury, Sinner has dominated. He surrendered just 17 games to reach the fourth round, then outplayed Ben Shelton in the quarterfinals to set up a second straight major semifinal against 38-year-old Djokovic.
Djokovic, the second-oldest Wimbledon men’s semifinalist in the Open era, was physically diminished after a nasty fall in his quarterfinal win over Flavio Cobolli. But he tipped his hat to Sinner, describing the Italian as too strong in another great performance.
“I think I will give a slight edge to Carlos as a favourite [in the final] because of the two titles he's won here and the way he's playing and the confidence he has right now,” Djokovic said.
“But it's just a slight advantage because Jannik is hitting the ball extremely well.”
Sinner and Alcaraz, the world’s top two, are the first two players since Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in 2008 to meet in the Roland Garros and Wimbledon finals in the same year.
Regardless of who wins, they will have combined to win the past seven major titles dating back to Australian Open 2024; only two other duos have combined to win more consecutive men’s majors in the Open era.
Sinner, the reigning US and Australian Open champion, has the opportunity to hold three of the sport’s four major titles and would put himself three quarters of the way to a career Grand Slam.
The fact the achievement would come against his toughest opponent and greatest rival so far would make it all the more special.
“Of course, we find ourselves, again, in this position,” Sinner said.
“This is the second consecutive Grand Slam that we are in the final and playing each other, which is great from my side.
“I believe it's good for the sport. The more rivalries we have from now on, the better it is, because people want to see young players going against each other.
“He is the favourite. He won here two times in a row. He's again in the final. It's very tough to beat him on grass, but I like these challenges.
“I like to go head-to-head and trying to see what I can do and what I can reach.”