Taylor Fritz breaks down what makes Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner so tough to beat

Taylor Fritz has emerged as one of the sharpest tennis minds of his generation, able to deliver incisive analysis on himself and opponents alike. The American put that skill to use following a four-set Wimbledon semifinal defeat to Carlos Alcaraz, who will aim to win a third straight title at SW19 against Jannik Sinner on Sunday.

Fritz came close to forcing the world No. 2 into a fifth set on Centre Court Friday, but confessed he may have preferred to face Sinner for the shot at a first Wimbledon final.

“I'd say I felt pretty comfortable from the ground with Jannik when we played in Turin,” Fritz said after finishing his first Wimbledon semifinal. “I think Jannik typically has a bigger serve, so it's tougher to get in on his return games. For me, from the ground I think I had more success rallying and playing with Jannik because he plays a bit flatter, and it's a little bit more predictable. He's unbelievable at what he does playing from the baseline.

“I think Carlos is a little more unpredictable with the slicing and the coming to net and the dropshots. Carlos has a lot of different ways to play. I also think Carlos, one thing he does, when he whips his forehand cross, there's a lot of movement away, which is difficult. Jannik is more through the court.”

Sinner indeed penetrated the court with ruthless efficiency in the second semifinal, winning a ninth straight set against Novak Djokovic to reach a first Wimbledon final. Sinner has won his last four matches against Fritz—three in straight sets—but Fritz would still pick the Italian over Alcaraz as an ideal challenge.

“For me personally, I'd rather probably deal with the flat one than the ball that's working away from me. They both generate a lot of just, like, raw power. But I think for me it's a little more uncomfortable to play Carlos just because of the unpredictability of what he's going to do. I think I play a lot off of anticipation. You never know what Carlos might just hit like a short kicker and serve and volley on like a 15-30 or something like that, which I feel like if I'm playing Jannik, that's something that's probably not going to happen.”

Believing he matches up best against Alcaraz on quicker surfaces, Fritz blamed a poor opening game for putting himself on the back foot, and credited a strong serving performance—combined with the Spaniard’s ability to improvise—for making the difference in the end.

He has so many different ways to win, and he's very good at making adjustments...[In the] third set, fourth set, he randomly would be hitting 122, 123-mile-an-hour second serves. At the same time, hitting 85-mile-an-hour short kickers. When someone is serving that much variety on a second serve, it's really tough to get on it and be aggressive. Taylor Fritz on Carlos Alcaraz

“The two sets that I played to the level that I want to be playing at, I'm right there,” said Fritz. “Yeah, like I said, played really well in the second and the fourth. Lost the fourth, but it's there. I just need to avoid playing the times where the level dips a bit and then he can grab a break and just get ahead of me.

“He has so many different ways to win, and he's very good at making adjustments,” he continued. “He made a huge adjustment after the second set…Third set, fourth set, he randomly would be hitting 122, 123-mile-an-hour second serves. At the same time, hitting 85-mile-an-hour short kickers. When someone is serving that much variety on a second serve, it's really tough to get on it and be aggressive. That was a great adjustment that he made in that match.”

Fritz vowed to make adjustments of his own ahead of the tour’s return to North America, where he reached his first major final at the US Open last summer. Chief among them could be his return, which per Fritz, needs to be that much better to fend off their ability to land a one-two punch.

“Every time I play these guys, I learn a lot about what I need to do to improve and get better. Moving ahead, I just want to keep working on the things that are going to get me better, that are going to help me compete with these guys because at the end of the day, my ultimate goal is to win a slam. I think I'm going to have to at some point beat these guys to do it. It's obviously a tough ask.

“If I keep putting myself in these situations and playing them, I learn more about my game and what I need to do differently and what I need to do better to get to that level.”

Asked to preview Sunday’s championship match, Fritz called the Alcaraz-Sinner final a toss-up, particularly given the intangibles resulting from their five-hour five-setter at Roland Garros only four weeks ago.

“Sinner is obviously super hungry after the French Open. Carlos going for the three in a row. I mean, that's obviously a lot of motivation, and it's a big deal.

“I think they bring out the best in each other. It's going to come down to just, like, the big moments. It's so tough to call it.”