The thrilling rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner may be set for a fresh chapter at the Miami Open, but the top two seeds may have to be patient before they get on court in Flordia.
Alcaraz and Sinner played out an epic semi-final at last week’s BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, as the two brightest stars in the game shone brightly on one of the game’s biggest stages.
It was Alcaraz who prevailed, as the Spaniard came back from a set down to inflict the first defeat of the season on Sinner in a match that whetted the appetite for more tussles against the two players tipped by most experts to be the future of the men’s game.
As they are the top two seeds in Miami, Alcaraz and Sinner cannot meet until the final of the latest ATP 1000 tournament, but the duo may be frustrated as they look to get their campaigns underway in Flordia.
The pair were due to play their first matches on Friday and Saturday of this week, but the local weather forecast for the Miami area suggests play will be seriously disrupted on both days.
Thunder and heavy rain are predicted for the next couple of days, with the weather only improving on Sunday.
That would leave the event well behind schedule, with all men’s second round matches due to be played on Friday and Saturday.
Meanwhile, tennis fans hoping to see Sinner in action in Miami will have welcomed the sight of the Australian Open champion practising without pain in recent days.
Sinner finished the match with Alcaraz at Indian Wells complaining of a sore below and he was also seen stretching out his calf as the intense match reached the latter stages.
The 22-year-old admitted he was not sure whether he could compete in Miami, but he has been practising with a full schedule ahead of his opening match against fellow Italian Andrea Vavassori.
Sinner will be keen to bounce back from his first defeat of 2024, but he is right to be satisfied with the progress he has made over the last few months.
“Tennis is a sport of balance,” said Sinner after his defeat against Alcaraz.
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“You going hard, and then you have sometimes you have to slow down a little bit and everything. But today I missed a lot of forehands where usually I try to be aggressive.
“In this match, I made the mistakes. We have to understand why, you know, and that’s it.
“I think it was still a great match. You know, I think we both played really good. There were some entertaining rallies.
“You are always impressed when you play against him (Alcaraz), but you are also prepared, you know, like for certain shots, drop shots.
“He’s moving really, really fast, as we know. Especially on this court where the ball bounces really high, it’s not easy to play against him, because he can play with a lot of spin.
“Maybe I was too predictable at some points. I was doing the same things over and over again, which in my mind let me down.
“I was playing really good the first set. Then after, you know, when you see your opponent, you know, struggling a little bit, I tried to stay solid instead of, you know, trying to move around.
“So I was too predictable at some points. I think that’s the lesson for today. We will work on certain things, you know, and hopefully I will get better.”
