Mats Wilander has outlined the things Jannik Sinner needs to do if he wants to win Roland Garros.
After winning the Australian Open in January, the Italian is searching for his second successive Grand Slam and first on clay.
He has made an impressive start by reaching the third round in Paris, where he will play Pavel Kotov, who knocked out Stan Wawrinka late on Wednesday evening.
But in order for him to go all the way at Roland Garros, Wilander discussed exactly what the Italian must do to achieve that.
How does Mats Wilander think Jannik Sinner can win the French Open?
Sinner reached round three after beating home favourite Richard Gasquet in straight sets.
After the 22-year-old’s victory, Wilander, a three-time Roland Garros winner, highlighted the player’s aggressive style and how he can utilise to be successful at the clay court major.
“If Jannik Sinner is going to win the French Open this year, he needs to keep playing the way he is, which is very much the same way he plays on a hard court,” the Swede told Eurosport.
“Take the ball really early… I’m not sure if he can really stand that close to the baseline and hit his backhand against the best players in the world like Carlos Alcaraz, or if Novak [Djokovic] picks up his game a little bit. But at this point in his career, that’s the way he plays.”
What is Jannik Sinner’s French Open record?
Sinner has yet to produce his best tennis at the French Open. He won the Australian Open and has semi-final appearances at the US Open and Wimbledon under his belt.
But his best result at the clay court major is a quarter-final showing back in 2020, when it was played at the unusual time of October due to the coronavirus pandemic.
This was Sinner’s first ever appearance in the last eight of a Grand Slam and he faced none other than the ‘King of Clay’, Rafael Nadal.
In his first meeting with the Spaniard, Sinner’s efforts to dethrone him were in vain and he succumbed to a 6-7, 4-6, 1-6 defeat.
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