Sinner has been diligently practicing new secret weapons and admits he has been making changes since losing at the US Open.

At this year’s US Open, while Sabalenka successfully defended her title, Sinner fell short of his goal, losing in the final to a resurgent and unstoppable Alcaraz. The player who once struggled with his serve at Wimbledon seemed to have disappeared. In fact, Alcaraz’s serve was quite lethal in the final (with a diverse range of shots), whereas Sinner found himself struggling on his service games.

Reflecting on the match afterward, the Italian star understood that to gain the upper hand against Alcaraz, he needed to make some adjustments — their head-to-head record currently stands at 10 wins for Alcaraz and 5 for Sinner. What better occasion than the ongoing China Open to implement these changes?

Just today, Sinner defeated Altmaier in the second round of the China Open. Although he faltered near the end of the second set — getting broken while serving at 5-6 and being broken three times overall — he dominated the final set, closing it out 6-0. Thanks to his clutch performance at critical moments, the final score was 6-4, 5-7, 6-0, advancing Sinner to the quarterfinals. After the match, he revealed his current training plan, emphasizing his efforts to become a more “unpredictable” player (as he mentioned after his US Open loss), and today’s performance reflected those changes.

“Right now, I’m investing a lot of mental energy. Today’s match was probably 80% playing my own game and 20% trying new things. Maybe I should be playing 95% of my familiar tennis and 5% experimenting, preferably in quieter moments. But there are a lot of positives here; it’s all part of the process,” Sinner said in a post-match interview. Interestingly, after his tenth loss to Alcaraz, he openly acknowledged the adjustments he’s making in his style and tactics.

In the US Open final, Sinner’s serve became quite “predictable,” a weakness that Alcaraz exploited thoroughly. His first serve success rate was only 48%, forcing him to rely more on his second serve, while Alcaraz kept seizing control. Meanwhile, Alcaraz lost only 9 points on his first serve throughout the tournament and was broken just once, using his efficient serve to suppress Sinner’s returns.

However, at the China Open, Sinner is experimenting with new serving techniques, which he has been focusing on during pre-match practice. Regarding this, he said, “I can say I will become a better tennis player. I’m making some changes to my serve, small tweaks that could make a big difference. We’ll see how it turns out.”

Against Altmaier, Sinner’s first serve success rate reached 63%, and he incorporated tactics like drop shots, slices, and net approaches. In the first round against Cilic, this figure was even higher at 77%, clearly showing his efforts to improve first serve effectiveness. For Sinner, the goal is clear: by maintaining serve consistency and adding variety, he can gradually close the gap with the top players.

Yet he knows this won’t happen overnight. Sinner said, “It’s hard to add new elements in tennis, but I’m trying. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I think you need to hit the perfect shot to control the point, and often I haven’t found the right moment. But I hope that if I keep working hard, in a few months these changes will bring positive results.”

After losing to Alcaraz at the US Open, Sinner also lost the world No.1 ranking, but he revealed he hopes to reclaim it later this year. On the current ATP points list, Sinner trails Alcaraz by less than 600 points. With upcoming big tournaments like the Shanghai Masters and Paris Masters, the battle for No.1 could see new developments. Moreover, Sinner expressed confidence about regaining the top spot and even sent a subtle message to his rivals.

He said, “The season isn’t over yet. We still have Beijing here, then Shanghai, which is very important; Paris is important too. Turin, Davis Cup — all major events. Obviously, the biggest tournaments — the Grand Slams — are finished, and we’ve shared those titles.”

Although Sinner is satisfied with his progress this season so far, he hasn’t closed the year yet. To surpass Alcaraz by year-end, he must play his best tennis. Who do you think will finish as world No.1 this year? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Huohua)