Andre Agassi gives honest take on why Carlos Alcaraz is better than Jannik Sinner at French Open & Wimbledon

Andre Agassi gave his thoughts on Carlos Alcaraz's match-up advantage against Jannik Sinner on clay and grass. The American believes that the Spaniard's movement, which in his opinion stands apart from the rest of the ATP Tour field, could prove to be a considerable factor in him outmatching the World No. 1 at this year's French Open and Wimbledon—two Major tournaments that are played on natural surfaces.

Alcaraz won the much-coveted "Channel Slam" in fine fashion last year, beating top players like Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, and Alexander Zverev en route to achieving the feat. And while the 21-year-old slowed down a little on the hard courts in the following months, he is seemingly at home with his game during this year's European clay court swing, already having picked up a title in Monte Carlo and made it to the last four in Rome.

Ahead of Carlos Alcaraz's blockbuster semifinal at the 2025 Italian Open against Lorenzo Musetti, Tennis Channel invited eight-time Major winner Andre Agassi to discuss the attributes of the World No. 3's game that have helped him mount a 6-4 winning record against his archrival Sinner. The American legend gave kudos to the four-time Major winner's movement on "slippery" surfaces like clay and grass, where a lot of his peers struggle with their balance.

"Alcaraz's upside on anything slippery is his chance to be a level [above] or have an advantage over Sinner. The one thing that impresses me so much about Alcaraz, and there's a lot he can improve in my opinion," Andre Agassi told Tennis Channel when asked about the parts of Carlos Alcaraz's game that match well against Jannik Sinner. "When I watched him at Wimbledon, when I watch him on the slippery grass or the slippery clay, his diminished speed diminishes less than others."

During the interaction, the 55-year-old also spoke briefly about why Jannik Sinner is currently the superior hardcourt player of the two youngsters.

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Andre Agassi on Jannik Sinner's edge over Carlos Alcaraz on hardcourts

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz pose at net during Six Kings Slam 2024 | Image Source: Getty

Andre Agassi insisted that Jannik Sinner's ability to hit with high pace regularly and change shot direction at will helped him defeat Carlos Alcaraz in some of their hardcourt matches recently. That said, he reiterated his praise of the Spaniard's movement on clay and grass, both of which are much different from hard courts.

"But when you look at a hardcourt, where Sinner can get on top of those balls, there's so much of action coming off Alcaraz's racket," Andre Agassi said. "I think when Sinner is giving him that kind of intensity, Sinner is just directing the traffic on the hard surfaces. But you start going to the French Open, Wimbledon, I think that 3% diminished return of movement will be a huge factor."

For academic purposes, while Sinner has by far recorded the better results on hardcourt over the last one and a half year, winning two Australian Open titles, one US Open title, and his home tournament at the ATP Finals in Turin, he still trails Alcaraz 2-5 on the surface.