Even though the Italian has only won one title on clay in his 13-year career, Jannik Sinner has already been set as the betting favorite to win the Monte Carlo Masters this coming week. And only one of his 17 finals—his victory over Carlos Alcaraz in Umag in 2022—has taken place on clay.
Sinner, though, has improved on his least productive surface, having advanced to the semifinals of the Monte Carlo Masters the previous year and finishing in the quarterfinals of the French Open and the Rome Open.
At his Monte Carlo pre-event press conference, Sinner was questioned concerning his problems with clay.
“I say struggle because, although I feel more at ease on hard courts, I’m not a very good player on clay. It’s just not the surface where I feel comfortable overall. It was at Roland Garros that I participated in my first Grand Slam quarterfinal on clay. In Rome, I set up quarters. So let’s investigate.
“To be honest, I didn’t have the best season on clay last year. I’m hoping to improve on that this year, but I’m sure I can still play well on clay.” It does take time, as I know from my extensive clay-court practice sessions between the ages of 14 and 20, but you have to play a little less because most of the tournaments are followed by hard-court competitions. However, I’m thrilled to be here. I believe it can be beneficial if you create the clay with a close friend.
Sinner is likewise decreasing his expectations for the week, as Novak Djokovic mentioned.
It promises to be an incredible competition. I enjoy playing here a lot. While there aren’t many expectations for this early in the clay season, the aim is to be prepared for Roland Garros and, ideally, the Olympics.
He declared, “This week shall be used as practice.” “It will be fascinating to observe.”
The second-seeded Sinner faces Alejandro Davidovich Fokina or Sebastian Korda in a difficult first-round match. Of his 23 games this year, he has won 22.
