2025 Wimbledon Men's Final: Sinner v. Alcaraz

[MargaretMcAleer]

Darren Cahill said these words to Jannik before he went on court,
Power, Strength and Speed, keep believing, keep bringing the power ,keep bringing your game.
It paid off!

 

[El Dude]

And Rafa then won his sixth in January 2009. With Carlos it wasn’t unreasonable that he’d win his sixth today, and then possibly a seventh in New York. Or if not then, wrap up a career slam in January in Oz, at still only 22.

He inspires these expectations because he’s just so good, but as you say, today the rough edges that blighted him on and off over the two weeks were more prominent than his strengths. It’s more realistic to expect this than to think he’ll win everything immediately.

Better for tennis too. Better for tennis that his main rival won a big one against him, as well, by being mentally stronger and better on the day. And very impressive that Sinner responded this way after his tough loss in Paris.

Tennis is unpredictable now, and that’s great..

Yup, though it has become rather predictable in terms of the Slam titles. That's seven in a row now for the Dynamic Duo. It will be interesting to see who breaks that streak first. I suppose Novak is still the best bet, or someone who has shown a high ceiling like Draper or Mensik playing the match of their lives. But we might also have to wait for Fonzie in 2027-28.

 

[Moxie]

There's still a quality of rough edges with Alcaraz. Woe to the rest of the tour if he manages to smooth them out and retain his ferocity. The point being, I still think he could improve. Jannik, I think, is maxed out - or close to it.

So I wouldn't dampen expectations in that Carlos can win literally any match. But if you think he'll win every match, then sure .

As for quickest to five Slams:

Nadal (b. June 3, 1986) - 2008 Wimbledon (final on July 6, 2008). 22 years old, 1 month and 3 days.
Alcaraz (b. May 5, 2003) - 2025 Roland Garros (June 8, 2025). 22 years old, 1 month and 3 days.

Given that June is one day longer than May, I believe Alcaraz was one day younger than Nadal. Someone can check my math, though.

Oh, and...

Borg (b. June 6, 1956) - 1978 Roland Garros (June 11, 1978). 22 years old, 5 days.

So Borg was younger than Nadal and Alcaraz by about three weeks.

I can check the math, but checking the calendar, May is actually one day longer than June. ("Thirty days hath September, April, June..." etc.) LOL.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I can check the math, but checking the calendar, May is actually one day longer than June. ("Thirty days hath September, April, June..." etc.) LOL.

I was never good at maths either

 

[Kieran]

Yup, though it has become rather predictable in terms of the Slam titles. That's seven in a row now for the Dynamic Duo. It will be interesting to see who breaks that streak first. I suppose Novak is still the best bet, or someone who has shown a high ceiling like Draper or Mensik playing the match of their lives. But we might also have to wait for Fonzie in 2027-28.

That’s the thing, Novak is still the best bet if the Duo dip, and that says everything about SissypussyVedevZverev. Let alone Rune and the permanently deleted FAA. Several generations of players stillborn, though at least we can give Medvedev kudos for actually chalking up an unexpected W in Flushing Meadows.

I think the best thing for tennis is a Sinner Alcaraz barnburner in America, this time Carlos levelling the score for the year. That emphasis of the difference between them and the rest will hopefully spur great youngsters like the Fonz for the next couple of years..

 

[El Dude]

I can check the math, but checking the calendar, May is actually one day longer than June. ("Thirty days hath September, April, June..." etc.) LOL.

Whoops...so that means Rafa was one day younger when he hoisted his 5th.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

When you consider Jannik just winning the biggest title in tennis, Wimbledon, only six week after having the the French on his racquet is some achievement. Elite mentality comes to mind

 

[El Dude]

That’s the thing, Novak is still the best bet if the Duo dip, and that says everything about SissypussyVedevZverev. Let alone Rune and the permanently deleted FAA. Several generations of players stillborn, though at least we can give Medvedev kudos for actually chalking up an unexpected W in Flushing Meadows.

I think the best thing for tennis is a Sinner Alcaraz barnburner in America, this time Carlos levelling the score for the year. That emphasis of the difference between them and the rest will hopefully spur great youngsters like the Fonz for the next couple of years..

I highly doubt we see another surge from the Little Three - at least good enough to win a Slam. Best-case scenario for those guys and they have a nice career Indian Summer and win some Masters, but I think their Slam-competitive days are done.

As for other guys who have a chance of winning a Slam, I put Rune in a similar category as Draper and maybe Musetti, Shelton and Fils. Maybe, maybe not. Too soon to tell, and it depends upon how these guys develop and if they are blessed with a perfect storm scenario. But they've sort of replaced the Little Three as primary contenders, even if it seems unlikely at this point that any of them get past Sincaraz. I'd probably put Rune below Draper, in terms of chances.

Fonseca is in his own category: Still too young and green to really know how good he'll get, but with the highest upside of anyone outside of the two. Mensik might be between the Rune group and Fonseca. The upside he displayed at Miami is nothing to sneeze at, but it remains to be seen if he can find it on a more consistent basis and translate it to Slams. He's also really young, though (turns 20 in September), so he's got time to develop.

 

[atttomole]

There's still a quality of rough edges with Alcaraz. Woe to the rest of the tour if he manages to smooth them out and retain his ferocity. The point being, I still think he could improve. Jannik, I think, is maxed out - or close to it.

So I wouldn't dampen expectations in that Carlos can win literally any match. But if you think he'll win every match, then sure .

As for quickest to five Slams:

Nadal (b. June 3, 1986) - 2008 Wimbledon (final on July 6, 2008). 22 years old, 1 month and 3 days.
Alcaraz (b. May 5, 2003) - 2025 Roland Garros (June 8, 2025). 22 years old, 1 month and 3 days.

Given that June is one day longer than May, I believe Alcaraz was one day younger than Nadal. Someone can check my math, though.

Oh, and...

Borg (b. June 6, 1956) - 1978 Roland Garros (June 11, 1978). 22 years old, 5 days.

So Borg was younger than Nadal and Alcaraz by about three weeks.

Why do you think Sinner has maxed out, or close to?

 

[Kieran]

Congrats to Jannik, but I still believe that early Djokovic is better. Novak's losses in 2012 were to Federer, Andy Murray, and Juan Martin del Potro. Jannik lost to Bublik and was being dominated by Dmitrov. If you go back a year earlier, then Novak beat a peak Nadal to win Wimbledon (2011 was the last year of Nadal's peak; 2012 marked the first year of his decline with his upset loss to Rosol). Jannik, although he beat Hurkacz at Halle, lost to Medvedev at Wimbledon last year.

If Jannik struggled against Medvedev, Bublik, and Dmitrov, there's no way he's beating a peak 2011 Nadal, or even a 2012 Federer/Murray/del Potro on grass.

Early Novak? Sinner is 23 going on 24. At that age Novak had 2 GS titles and zero weeks at number one…

 

[El Dude]

Why do you think Sinner has maxed out, or close to?

Just a hunch. Given his game style, I just don't see him getting better. He's very polished, and rarely plays poorly. I suppose he could improve in small ways here or there, but he just seems closer to "perfection" (of his talent) than Alcaraz. Of course it might just be relative to Carlos...I mean, if both of them improve, we're in for a very predictable next few years.

 

[atttomole]

Just a hunch. Given his game style, I just don't see him getting better. He's very polished, and rarely plays poorly. I suppose he could improve in small ways here or there, but he just seems closer to "perfection" (of his talent) than Alcaraz. Of course it might just be relative to Carlos...I mean, if both of them improve, we're in for a very predictable next few years.

I see. In my opinion he could improve at the net. He could add some finesse to his game, for example, with more drop shots.

 

[El Dude]

I see. In my opinion he could improve at the net. He could add some finesse to his game, for example, with more drop shots.

Yeah, it is all possible - just as it is also possible that Alcaraz won't get better. I mean, both are already "super-elite."

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Attomole,

Jannik and his net play has been a ongoing progression,he seems to be more confident in his ability in his volleys, there is still room for improvement
Alcaraz is just soo special at the net, with volleys just incredible for someone as young as he is.

 

[El Dude]

Perhaps the reason I think Carlos has more room to improve is that he's still a very intuitive player. Both of them have incredible skills that they can fine-tune, but Sinner is more tactical. I mean, obviously Alcaraz's approach works most of the time, but he might benefit from looking at their match-ups in a more tactical sense, rather than (seemingly) just winging it and playing according to his prodigious talent.

And yes, I know I'm exaggerating - Carlos isn't only intuitive, and obviously has tactics in mind. But I just think his approach could be refined.

 

[Moxie]

Perhaps the reason I think Carlos has more room to improve is that he's still a very intuitive player. Both of them have incredible skills that they can fine-tune, but Sinner is more tactical. I mean, obviously Alcaraz's approach works most of the time, but he might benefit from looking at their match-ups in a more tactical sense, rather than (seemingly) just winging it and playing according to his prodigious talent.

And yes, I know I'm exaggerating - Carlos isn't only intuitive, and obviously has tactics in mind. But I just think his approach could be refined.

His serve is still a WIP, for one. It went a bit AWOL today. Remember, this is his new serve this year. And there ARE rough edges he could smooth out. I can see why you'd say that Jannik is sort of already there, but I do think he will still work on his finesse game. I know why Cahill wants to retire, but it's too bad for Sinner, a bit. I think they're a good fit. I wonder who he'll get next.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

His serve is still a WIP, for one. It went a bit AWOL today. Remember, this is his new serve this year. And there ARE rough edges he could smooth out. I can see why you'd say that Jannik is sort of already there, but I do think he will still work on his finesse game. I know why Cahill wants to retire, but it's too bad for Sinner, a bit. I think they're a good fit. I wonder who he'll get next.

Today there are hints that Cahill will stay on next year, so watch this space

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Sinner played such a tactical match, he dominated the middle of the court for starters and his bhand was on 'song' in the match today
He pulled the trigger at the right times during the match

 

[Fiero425]

And here's a nice little streak Sinner is on: 8 big title finals in a row, winning 6 of them.

Longest Big Title Finals Streaks:
18 - Novak Djokovic, 2014-16 (15-3)
12 - Roger Federer, 2005-06 (8-4)
8 - John McEnroe, 1983-84 (7-1)
8 - Jannik Sinner, 2024-25+ (6-2)
7 - Roger Federer, 2007 (4-3)
7 - Rafael Nadal, 2011 (2-5)

Roger's streak was crazy enough, but Novak...jeezus.

Just as well Carlos was stopped! I'm sure some would be ready to elevate him to Fedal, Borg, Sampras status already! I'm on board though! He's great & can only improve! I believe like you that Sinner more than likely has max'd out & others will catch up! His reign as #1 won't be that long! After surviving that QF vs Grigor, you have to say LUCK was dripping off Sinner to take this championship!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

BTW,
This is a rivalry built on 'respect" Carlos and Jannik!