"Sinner’s clay game is better than Djokovic’s": Mouratoglou explains why Sinner has the edge in Roland Garros

Patrick Mouratoglou stated that Jannik Sinner’s game on clay is even better than that of Novak Djokovic in his best years, and placed him as the undisputed favourite for the Roland Garros title. The French coach even compared Sinner’s chances in Paris to those Rafael Nadal had in his prime years.

And the World No. 1 continues on a streak on clay courts, with 11 consecutive wins on the surface and titles at the first Masters 1000 events in Monte Carlo Masters and Madrid Open, including as many as four victories over top-10 opponents in the past month. Sinner swept Alexander Zverev last Sunday in the Madrid final by 6-1, 6-2, lifting his fifth consecutive Masters 1000 title—something no player had achieved since the category was created.

This time, Sinner will be playing at home and will look in Rome to complete the record of winning at least one title at each Masters 1000 event—something only Novak Djokovic had previously achieved. The No. 1 arrives as the heavy favourite at one of the few tournaments he has yet to win, which will also serve as the perfect lead-up to Roland Garros, where Mouratoglou also sees clear superiority from the Italian.

“I think the chances that Jannik Sinner wins Roland Garros cannot be higher,” said the former Serena Williams coach on his social media. “For me, it is comparable to the chances Rafael Nadal had to win Roland Garros throughout his career. I think Sinner has a similar margin, not for the same reason, because the reason why Rafa was unbeatable on clay was also his game style.”

Mouratoglou has become one of the most respected coaches in the tennis world, working with Serena Williams during 10 of her Grand Slam titles, but also guiding other high-profile names on the ATP and WTA Tours, including Simona Halep, Holger Rune, and Naomi Osaka.

For the French coach, the absence of Carlos Alcaraz in the upcoming events will be key to Sinner’s success, as without the Spaniard he appears to have a clear path to continue collecting the biggest trophies. “Jannik has so much margin on any surface, except against Carlos, but Carlos is out. It is not about his game style, it is about his dominance, which is unmatched.”

However, the Frenchman also owes part of his visibility to his frequent appearances on social media, where on more than one occasion he has delivered opinions that are, at the very least, controversial. This time, he analysed Sinner’s current level during this clay swing and compared it to Djokovic’s best years, when despite his dominance on tour, he struggled to fully translate it onto clay courts.

“If you look at the two years when Novak Djokovic had a similar kind of dominance, 2011 and 2015, in both cases Novak did not win Roland Garros,” Mouratoglou added. “But there is a big difference. I think that Jannik’s game for clay is better than Novak’s game for clay. Jannik plays with much more margin over the net. I think the quality of his ball is different, which is so important on clay. That gives him even a slight advantage.”

Both Sinner and Djokovic will be competing this week at the Rome Open, where the Italian starts as the clear favourite and awaits his debut against the winner between Alex Michelsen and Sebastian Ofner. On the other side, Djokovic is the third seed and awaits the winner between Márton Fucsovics and Dino Prizmic (qualifier).

Without Alcaraz in the draw, and with Zverev repeatedly falling against Sinner, Djokovic appears as the main name capable of troubling the Italian, although in Rome they could only meet in a potential final.

It is worth remembering that the Serbian already defeated Sinner earlier this year in the semifinals of the Australian Open, and he will certainly have in mind that the Italian will be his main obstacle on the road to the Roland Garros title—where Novak Djokovic has already been crowned three times, even overcoming the years of Nadal’s dominance in Paris.