John McEnroe made a controversial claim about Rafael Nadal at the French Open earlier this month.
Appearing on TNT Sports as a pundit, McEnroe did what he does better than anyone else, and sent the tennis world into a frenzy with his controversial comments.
Seven-time Grand Slam winner McEnroe claimed Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz may be favored to beat Nadal ‘at his best’ on clay.
Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images
Several big names disagreed with McEnroe, including Andy Murray, who doesn’t believe Alcaraz and Sinner are quite at Nadal’s level yet.
Weighing in with his thoughts, one top WTA coach has now explained why he also disagrees with McEnroe’s claim.
Patrick Mouratoglou doesn’t think Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz would be favored against Rafael Nadal
Reacting to McEnroe’s comments on Instagram, Naomi Osaka’s coach Patrick Mouratoglou gave his verdict.
“I don’t think that [Carlos] Alcaraz or [Jannik] Sinner would be favorites against [Rafael] Nadal in a Roland Garros final,” said Mouratoglou.
“Because Nadal has a game that is so different from everybody else, so adapted to clay. I don’t know how they would deal with that, so that’s why I don’t think we can say that.
“There’s no way we can know, and considering that this guy won 14 Roland Garros [titles], it’s difficult to think that the year after, any of the two finalists would beat him.”
Nadal is the most successful player in the history of the French Open, winning 14 titles, eight more than his closest challenger.
RankNameTitlesYears won1Rafael Nadal142005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 20222Bjorn Borg61974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981T-3Mats Wilander31982, 1985, 1988T-3Ivan Lendl31984, 1986, 1987T-3Gustavo Kuerten31997, 2000, 2001T-3Novak Djokovic32016, 2021, 2023T-7Jan Kodes21970, 1971T-7Jim Courier21991, 1992T-7Sergi Bruguera21993, 1994T-7Carlos Alcaraz22024, 2025List of multiple French Open champions (Open Era)
Having dominated on the clay as much as he did, it’s hard to believe anyone past or present could ever be considered ‘favorite’ to beat Nadal on the red dirt.
The Spaniard’s performances against Alcaraz and Sinner strengthen his case further, as he had the better of the youngsters when they battled it out during Nadal’s final years on tour.
How did Rafael Nadal perform against Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz on clay?
Nadal played five matches against the world’s top two players on clay during his career, winning four and losing one.
MatchWinnerLoserScore2022 Madrid Open – QFCarlos AlcarazRafael Nadal6-2, 1-6, 6-32021 French Open – 4RRafael NadalJannik Sinner7-5, 6-3, 6-02021 Italian Open – 2RRafael NadalJannik Sinner7-5, 6-42021 Madrid Open – 2RRafael NadalCarlos Alcaraz6-1, 6-22020 French Open – QFRafael NadalJannik Sinner7-6, 6-4, 6-1Rafael Nadal’s clay head-to-head record with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
He first met Sinner at Roland Garros five years ago, as the pair faced off for a place in the semi-finals.
After the Italian pushed Nadal close in the first set, his resistance began to falter, losing in straight sets, 6-7, 4-6, 1-6.
One year later, Nadal took on his fellow Spaniard for the first time, dropping just three games as he produced a dominant display in the second round of the Madrid Open.
Two more meetings with Sinner followed, in Rome and at Roland Garros in 2021, as Nadal maintained his flawless record against the now three-time Major champion, winning both matches without dropping a set.
It was only in his fifth match against one of the sport’s brightest young stars that Nadal tasted defeat, as he returned to take on Alcaraz at the Madrid Open in 2022.
After three thrilling sets, Alcaraz hit a sensational forehand to win the match 6-2, 1-6, 6-3.
Nadal never played another match against Alcaraz or Sinner on clay, retiring in 2024 with a 4-1 record.
There is, of course, a valid argument to be made that Alcaraz and Sinner are different players now than they were two or three years ago, but in the same breath you could say Nadal was far from his ‘prime’ in the 2020s.
We’ll never know how the Spaniard or Italian would perform against Nadal at his best, but to say they would be ‘favorites’ might be a step too far.
On grass, however, that may well have been a different story, as it seems likely that Alcaraz and Sinner will surpass the 39-year-old’s career achievements on the surface.
Alcaraz will have a chance to go one better than Nadal and win his third Wimbledon title later this summer when the tournament begins on Monday, June 30.
AloJapan.com