"Right now it feels like he has very little": Jimmy Connors picks out major flaw in Jannik Sinner's rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz

On the latest episode of Advantage Connors, Jimmy Connors and his son Brett dove deep into the most compelling rivalry in men’s tennis right now: Carlos Alcaraz versus Jannik Sinner. With Alcaraz winning seven of their last eight meetings, the pair discussed whether the Spaniard has taken a decisive step forward — and what it will take for Sinner or anyone else to keep pace.

Brett opened the debate by pointing out the record: “How will the battle for the number one spot between Alcaraz and Sinner unfold? Has Alcaraz grown noticeably stronger now? Because he’s won seven out of eight.”

Jimmy was quick to note how slim the margins are. “That should tell you. And the one out of the eight that Sinner won is surprising because it was Wimbledon. You’d think Alcaraz, with his variety and drop shots, would shine on grass. So the one Sinner did win was almost the most surprising,” he said.

The former world No. 1 highlighted just how relentlessly both players perform from the first ball. “Both guys start out at such a high level. There’s no working your way into it. From game one, they’re at full tilt — deuce, deuce, deuce. That sets the precedent. The separation between them is so tiny, but it’s also clear from the rest of the field. One little letdown changes the whole match.”

Brett reflected on how Alcaraz used to sometimes stumble against lower-ranked opponents. “A year ago it felt like he was this generational talent, destined to be one of the greats, but he’d take weird losses. He lost to Goffin in Miami — it was strange. Has he taken the next step where those kinds of results are behind him?”

Jimmy agreed: “Those kinds of losses happen to everyone. Nobody’s perfect. But now it feels like once it clicked for him, he’s not dropping those early-round matches anymore. Since Monte Carlo he hasn’t had those lapses. Now, you better be one of the top guys and catch him on a bad day. And even then, don’t count on it happening very often.”

He stressed that for challengers, the task is immense. “That’s why we talk about somebody young coming up to push him. Back in 2021, guys in their 30s were still at the top. Now, kids who are 18, 19, 20 are already bigger, stronger, and better prepared. They’ve got training, diet, psychologists, a whole team. Tennis used to be an individual sport, but now it’s almost like a team event.”

That shift led into a discussion about on-court coaching. “They all look up at their box every time,” Jimmy said. “If I’d done that back in my day, your grandma and Poncho would’ve poked my eyes out! They’d say, ‘Take care of your own business.’”

For Jimmy, coaching during matches undermines what tennis should be. “I’m against it. Do your work beforehand. Tennis is a one-on-one sport. If it’s Davis Cup, fine, but in regular tournaments, no. Know what you can do, know how well you can do it, then go out there and do it. You either win or lose on your own.”

While acknowledging Sinner’s rise to No. 1, both agreed he must keep evolving to truly match Alcaraz over the long haul.

“I think Sinner can be the second-best player in the world for a long time with the way he plays,” Brett said. “But to beat Alcaraz more consistently, he needs more variety. Right now it feels like he has very little. He’s improved at coming to net, but mostly he’s just crushing groundstrokes, wearing guys down. Against Carlos, though, you see the difference. Sinner’s playing great, but Carlos is mixing in three or four different things — drop shots, changes of pace. Sinner’s the first one to feel the pressure.”

Jimmy echoed that sentiment: “When two guys are both redlining, that’s what you want to see. But the first one to drop below that red line is in trouble. That’s what I faced playing Borg, McEnroe, Lendl, Vilas — you always knew they were going to throw something at you. The question was whether you could withstand it without getting run over.”

Alcaraz, he noted, has an extra gear few can match. “I saw it at the US Open. He lost the second set, then it was like he just started the engine again, went up another gear, and then another. That’s what makes him so tough to beat.”

As the rivalry continues, both Connors agreed that tennis is entering a fascinating era defined not by fading legends in their 30s but by young players pushing each other to new heights.

“The margins are so slim,” Jimmy concluded. “It’s about who can redline the longest, who can withstand the dips, and who can keep finding new ways to win. Right now, Alcaraz has that edge.”