Jannik Sinner: Toni Nadal lauds US Open champion after latest triumph - 'He has become an almost unbeatable player'

Published 12/09/2024 at 19:52 GMT

Rafael Nadal's uncle and former coach has heaped praise on world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in his latest piece for El Pais. Toni Nadal labelled the Italian as "an almost unbeatable player" following his straight-sets victory over the USA's Taylor Fritz at the 2024 US Open. However, he also admitted that he prefers the playing style of Sinner's Spanish rival, Carlos Alcaraz.

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Toni Nadal believes world No. 1 Jannik Sinner has become "almost unbeatable" after defeating Taylor Fritz in the 2024 US Open final.

Sinner stormed to his first US Open title with an emphatic 6-3 6-4 7-5 triumph over his American rival at Flushing Meadows.

The 23-year-old Italian holds two of the four Grand Slams, having won the Australian Open earlier this year.

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Nadal praised Sinner for cutting out unforced errors while still hitting the ball extremely hard.

“Today he has become an almost unbeatable player for the vast majority of his opponents," Nadal wrote in El Pais.

"He is capable of playing each of his strokes at a very high speed and making very few unforced errors.

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“Overcoming him from the back of the court is almost impossible and this is, precisely and in my opinion, the mistake that Fritz made in the first two sets: making the wrong decision to play very fast rallies from the back of the court and try to surprise him or connect a winning shot.

"But causing the Italian to make a mistake was, as we saw, practically impossible.”

Nadal is the uncle and former coach of Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal.

The 22-time Grand Slam winner formed a doubles partnership with Carlos Alcaraz to represent Spain at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Toni Nadal believes that Sinner and Alcaraz have already created an iconic rivalry that fans can look forward to watching for years to come.

“With the victory of Sinner on the men’s side, we can also credit more than ever what was already an obvious rivalry with our great champion, Carlos Alcaraz,” he added.

“With Sunday’s victory, Sinner won his second major of the year, equalling the record of the Spanish player [Alcaraz won the French Open and Wimbledon] and practically assuring himself of finishing the year as No. 1 in world tennis."

Nadal admits that he prefers Alcaraz's playing style but that Sinner's mental fortitude gives him an edge.

“If I may go back to Alcaraz since he is the one we care about, I must say that I still enjoy his game more," he added.

"I like him even more, but also admit and fear that the notorious improvement of the current leader, especially at a mental level, will make things really difficult for him."

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