"The two remind me of Federer and Nadal in my time," Fognini discusses Sinner and Alcaraz
After bidding farewell to the ATP circuit this summer, Fabio Fognini, former world No. 9, shares his thoughts on the new generation of tennis, mentioning the personalities of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the two best players in the world.
Fabio Fognini is now retired. The Italian, winner of the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 in 2019, played his last match at Wimbledon this year against Carlos Alcaraz and eventually conceded after a five-set battle.
This is timely as the 38-year-old has spoken about the Spaniard, as well as his fellow countryman Jannik Sinner, since both now dominate world tennis.
"For someone who is 24, Jannik (Sinner) sees things very clearly. He knows he has been beaten several times and now needs to step out of his comfort zone, do something different next time to beat Carlos (Alcaraz).
They are two different players. We Italians know Jannik better, we follow him and support him. In Italy, if you win, you're a phenomenon. If you lose, as has happened several times in finals, people start to doubt you.
The two remind me of Federer and Nadal in my time. Sinner is "square." I played with Andreas Seppi: I called him "kraut," because he came from the mountains. He was half German, half Italian. Jannik is like that, more square.
Carlos, on the other hand, seems to enjoy playing tennis. I watched his documentary, he says he goes to Ibiza to have fun after matches, and that's exactly what he conveys to me.
Alcaraz is someone who enjoys himself and needs this entertainment off the court. I was like that too, I relate more to this personality," Fognini assured Ubitennis.
