ANDY RODDICK PREDICTS AUSTRALIAN OPEN CHAMPION BETWEEN JANNIK SINNER & CARLOS ALCARAZ
Former world No 1 Andy Roddick has analysed Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz’s chances at the 2025 Australian Open and predicted who will win the men’s title.
Sinner, the world No 1, is the reigning Australian Open champion, having defeated Daniil Medvedev in five sets in the final at Melbourne Park a year ago to secure his maiden Grand Slam title.
The 23-year-old Italian also won the US Open last year and finished an outstanding 2024 season with eight titles — seven of which came at hard-court tournaments.
Alcaraz, who is the third seed at the Australian Open, is aiming to become the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam.
Last year, the 21-year-old Spaniard won his maiden French Open title and defended his Wimbledon crown to take his major title tally to four.
Sinner and Alcaraz are on the opposite sides of the draw in Melbourne, which opens up the possibility of a blockbuster first meeting in a Grand Slam final.
Roddick delivered his verdict on Sinner and Alcaraz, who he identified as the top two Australian Open contenders.
“Jannik Sinner is the favourite in the men’s, and he’s the person that I think will win,” the American told Betway.
“Will he dominate the year like he did in 2024? There is the cloud of the WADA case over him, so there’s every chance that this is the last time we see him for six months or a year.
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“A lot depends on how his case shakes out, but I do think he is the best hard-court player in the world. He has wrestled that mantle away from Novak Djokovic after a decade-plus run with that moniker.
“I think Sinner’s the one to beat in Australia, and I certainly wouldn’t bet against him.
“Carlos Alcaraz is his closest rival, but everyone knows he needs to find more consistency, and he’s not saying anything different.
“He won two Slams in 2024, which is nuts. We know his top level might be the best in the world. He won all his matches against Sinner in sanctioned events, but the consistency is the issue.
“Who’s more likely to lose early in a Slam right now between Sinner and Alcaraz? It’s Carlos. But I listened to him at an event in Charlotte, where I live, and he glossed over the two Slams very quickly and spent a lot of time talking about how he wants to be more consistent.
“For me, I’m thinking: ‘OK. You had a year that was better than my entire career, in five weeks!’ I think he is laser focused on what he can improve upon, and I think that makes him even more impressive.”
The 2003 US Open winner believes the rise of Sinner and Alcaraz — along with Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka in the women’s game — means the tennis world is in a good place.
“I was, apparently, a dummy for thinking that tennis was going to go through a bit of a dip after what I call the ‘one-namers’ – Roger [Federer], Rafa [Nadal], Serena [Williams], Venus [Williams],” Roddick continued.
“We’ve had really good players who are also stars fill the void, with Coco Gauff coming through, Aryna Sabalenka having this personality that jumps through the screen – for better or worse – Sinner being as good as he has become, and Alcaraz now attempting to be the youngest to ever complete the career Grand Slam.
“I don’t know that I saw this level of talent coming through right away, and I think tennis is pretty lucky to have it.”
2025-01-14T10:46:01Z