Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner lit up Court Philippe Chatrier in their thrilling Roland Garros final.
Alcaraz beat Sinner in a five-set thriller that is being labelled one of the best Grand Slam finals of all time.
Despite the praise that this match is receiving, Alcaraz has picked another major final that he thinks is better than his victory over Sinner.
One of the other players that the Spaniard beat en route to defending his Roland Garros title is Ben Shelton, who Alcaraz defeated in the fourth round.
Ben Shelton says Jannik Sinner’s serve is underrated as he compares him to Carlos Alcaraz
Shelton received his best result at Roland Garros this year, reaching the fourth round of the clay court major.
When speaking to the Tennis Channel, Shelton revealed that he only managed to watch the latter stages of the final between Alcaraz and Sinner.
In his analysis of the match, Shelton claimed that the serve was not even a factor and it was all down to the baseline rallies.
“I turned it on at 6-5 in the fifth and I was like let’s just see what this tie-break was looking like,” said Shelton. “I knew there had been ups and downs. Sinner got tight, then Alcaraz got tight.
“It kind of got to the point where these guys were playing a baseline game. The serve was a non-factor. They were putting the serve in the box and going to war.
“It was really entertaining. The points they were having, every point was crazy and for me it was the tiebreaker that was the most insane. Those first six or seven points from Alcaraz, you go back and watch those and you’re like that’s some of the most clutch tennis I have seen at 6-6 in the fifth in my life.”
While Shelton made this comment about their serves, he went on to say later in the interview that he thinks Sinner’s serve is actually underrated.
Sinner hit eight aces and zero double faults in the final against Alcaraz, winning 70% of his points on first serve.
Shelton, who is one of the biggest servers on the ATP Tour, went on to suggest that Alcaraz’s serve is more unpredictable.
This claim is supported by the Roland Garros final, where Alcaraz hit seven aces as well as seven double faults.
“With Sinner he hits a big ball but he hits it big with margin,” continued Shelton. “It is heavy. It’s not flat with underspin. It is heavy off both sides and it’s clean. For me I like the ball a bit more up in the zone so I don’t mind his ball.
“I think what a lot of players struggle with when playing him is that at the beginning of the match his speed can be overwhelming and that was the case with Alcaraz.
“Once he got used to the speed of play he could start doing all of what he wanted to do but I think that’s the biggest thing with him is the constant ball speed off both wings, the ability to hit the open stance backhand on the run and not have to go to the slice is like having two forehands.
“And he is a great server. He is a clutch server and a big server. It seems like on break points he is always going to ace you. That is one thing that I think is underrated for him sometimes is how well he serves.
“Then with Alcaraz he is a little bit different. He is okay with spinning the serve in the box sometimes and just starting the point.
“He can also go at 135mph and hit the ace but he doesn’t do that all the time. He has a heavy forehand, elite mover, great skills up at the net and he can go lockdown mode from the baseline as well.
“Carlos’s tennis is a bit more flashy, inject pace, change of speed. Maybe he is coming to net. Sinner is more like you know what he is going to do but it’s tough to do anything about it.”
Ben Shelton explains what he has taken from playing Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz
Shelton has played both Alcaraz and Sinner at Grand Slam tournaments this year, but has only managed to win one set against the two top-ranked players.
The 22-year-old has never beaten Alcaraz in their three previous meetings, but he does have a victory over Sinner.
When speaking about what he has taken from his previous matches against Sinner and Alcaraz, Shelton explained that he has realised how well they play the big points.
“I don’t know. I think the way that they play from the ground, especially Sinner, I think guys are thinking a bit differently about going toe to toe with them,” continued Shelton.
“For me I am not really a guy who just rallies from the baseline so I think it’s a whole different match up. Playing both of them, I have had a lot of chances recently. Sets that I didn’t close out, set points on my racket, and they have played the clutch points, the big points, really well and make you earn it.
“That is one big thing for me that I have taken from those matches, one in Australia and one at the French. Once these guys get going they can be a runaway train, so having set points in the first set against Alcaraz and Sinner, those ones stung.
“But I guess if you are going to lose someone at a Grand Slam you might as well lose to the back to back defending champion.”
The next chance Shelton will have to play either player is on grass at the Queen’s Club Championships, where Alcaraz will also be present.
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