Sinner taking time with tactical tweaks to tackle Alcaraz

World number two Jannik Sinner said he is making small tweaks to his game following his defeat by Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open final earlier this month and the Italian is confident it is only a matter of time before he implements the changes in matches.

Sinner fell 6-2 3-6 6-1 6-4 at Flushing Meadows to surrender his crown and the top ranking to Alcaraz before admitting he had to be a lot more unpredictable to become a better player against his main rival.

“We’ve been reflecting a lot on that final,” Sinner said on Wednesday, ahead of his China Open campaign in Beijing.

“We’re working on new things and changing a lot of small things. The amount of mistakes at the moment is a little bit higher, but I hope that this recovers.

“It’s just a question of time. I don’t know how much I’m able to (implement changes) on the actual match court because one thing is practice and one thing is match.

“I’m very motivated. It’s great to work on something new, then we see how this ends up.”

While the Australian Open and Wimbledon champion sharpens his skills ahead of another potential encounter with Alcaraz at the Shanghai Masters next month, the Spaniard is gearing up for a tournament in Tokyo.

Alcaraz, who also beat Sinner in an epic French Open final this year, improved his head-to-head record to 10-5 at New York but believes that the Italian will be a better player the next time they meet. “I know he’s going to change,” Alcaraz said.

“He’s going to change something from the last match. It’s the same thing that I did when I lost to him a couple of times. I tried to be a better player.

“The next time I face him ... I have to be focused and I have to be ready for the changes. I’ll try to overcome those changes and be ready for that rivalry.

“It’s getting better for me and for tennis. We’ll see in the future how many times I’m going to play against him and in which circumstances we play. Right now it’s going great.”

Agencies