Darren Cahill has provided a crucial insight into Jannik Sinner’s preparation for today’s Wimbledon final, revealing what he told the 23-year-old before the match.
Facing Carlos Alcaraz for a 13th time, he would have been really keen to end his ongoing five-match losing streak when facing the world number two.
Especially given how the last defeat also came in a Grand Slam final, surrendering his two sets to love lead and three Championship points to somehow lose the match.
Cahill and the rest of Jannik Sinner’s staff will have been preparing him for the likelihood that he would once again face his generational rival, and today marks the day when he gets a chance to enact his revenge.
Darren Cahill reveals his pre-final talk for Jannik Sinner
Speaking to ESPN as they were drawing ever closer to the match’s start, they were fortunate enough to welcome Cahill onto their feed to give his final thoughts on the final.
After all, the tennis world has come to a standstill to watch the two best players on the planet do battle on the sport’s greatest stage.
Asked what his last words were to the Italian before sending him out to battle, his coach revealed: “Power, strength, and speed. It’s everything he possesses… in ample qualities of it. He just needs to keep believing, keep bringing the power, keep bringing his game.
“Great competitors, both of them… the first set is really important. Especially for Jannik to get off to a good start. He might vary a little different on the return. Normally, he likes to stand aggressively to return Carlos’ second serve. He might mix that up a little bit today to see if he can get a good hit on that 2nd serve because it gets up. But play his game.
“He’ll go out there and do his very best. We’re very proud of him.”
Ahead of this clash, we looked back on what happened the last time Sinner and Alcaraz met at Wimbledon.
Jannik Sinner is looking for his first non-hard-court Grand Slam title
Sinner will want this Wimbledon title for so, so many reasons.
However, chief among them will be to claim his first major away from the hard courts.
A three-time Grand Slam champion, these successes have come exclusively in Melbourne and New York respectively.
And, having come so close to the ultimate clay-court prize last month, today marks yet another chance, but on a different surface.
Grass has never been his favourite to play on, but with the technical and physical excellence he exudes, it should not matter what is under his feet.
