"Jannik doesn't give anything away" - Patrick Mouratoglou believes Novak Djokovic will have a tougher time beating Sinner than Carlos Alcaraz
ATP
Although Novak Djokovic has shown little signs of slowing down when facing tough opposition, the former World No.1 might find it more difficult to defeat Jannik Sinner than Carlos Alcaraz in 2025, according to renown coach Patrick Mouratoglou.
The Serbian failed to win a Grand Slam title in 2024, ending the year without a Major for the first time since 2017. Nonetheless, Djokovic did capture the Olympic gold medal that has eluded his impressive resume, defeating Alcaraz in a thrilling final.
Sinner's style of play makes him tougher to defeat, says Mouratoglou
Djokovic added three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray to his coaching team, with the duo hoping to help the 37-year old win his 25th Grand Slam title at the 2025 Australian Open. However, Mouratoglou believes overcoming Sinner could be Djokovic's greatest challenge this season.
"Is Andy the right person to motivate him [Djokovic]? I would say yes and no," began Mouratoglou. “I would say no because I don’t think he has that personality, he’s very quiet, but he’s very smart, and I think he’ll have good ideas on how to challenge Novak so that he finds a new form of motivation.
"The challenge is huge because the level of Alcaraz and Sinner is impressive. It might be harder for Novak to beat Sinner than Alcaraz, because Jannik doesn’t give anything away.
“Sinner has the same skills as Novak, he covers the court very well, he doesn’t miss anything and he takes the ball earlier than Novak. So Novak will have to get back into incredible shape to dominate Sinner. I’m not saying it’s easy to beat Alcaraz, it’s not.”
"The challenge is huge because the level of Alcaraz and Sinner is impressive. It might be harder for Novak to beat Sinner than Alcaraz, because Jannik doesn’t give anything away.
“Sinner has the same skills as Novak, he covers the court very well, he doesn’t miss anything and he takes the ball earlier than Novak. So Novak will have to get back into incredible shape to dominate Sinner. I’m not saying it’s easy to beat Alcaraz, it’s not.”
Djokovic, now ranked at World No.7, will kick off his 2025 season at the Brisbane International before heading to Melbourne for the first Grand Slam event of the season.
Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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