Former world No 2 Alex Corretja has dismissed concerns about Jannik Sinner’s 2026 form, claiming that the Italian will ultimately become a better player after making changes to his game.
World No 2 Sinner has tasted defeat at both his first two events of the season, with the Italian beaten by Novak Djokovic in a five-set Australian Open semi-final, before a three-set quarter-final loss to Jakub Mensik at the Qatar Open.
Prior to losing to Djokovic in Melbourne, Sinner had won his last five matches against the Serbian, and had been riding a 19-match win streak at the Australian Open — having lifted the title in 2024 and 2025.
Meanwhile, his loss to Mensik in Doha was the first time he had lost a completed match to someone outside the top 10 since June 2025.
With Carlos Alcaraz, Sinner’s leading rival, not yet tasting defeat in 2026, many have questioned whether the Italian is struggling at the start of the year.
However, the four-time Grand Slam champion has now been defended by Corretja, a two-time runner-up at the French Open.
Speaking to TNT Sports, Corretja backed Sinner to return to top form sooner rather than later, and claimed that the Italian’s early losses were a result of key changes he was making to his game.
He said: “I don’t think Sinner is having a hard time finding his best version.
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“Because I think he’s incorporating new things into his tennis to, as he said, not be so predictable.
“But that has a period in which you have to adapt, you have to incorporate, maybe with more drop shots, going up a little more to the net, looking for more winners in a different way, varying something, but all that has a toll and I think it’s what Sinner is paying for to be more complete as a player from now on.
“It is a good investment on his part and I think that’s what he has to do if you want to stay at the top by winning Grand Slam titles, which I’m convinced he will continue to do.”
World No 2 Sinner will return to action this week in Indian Wells, where he is the second seed behind world No 1 Alcaraz.
Indian Wells is the only Masters 1000 event on hard courts that Sinner has yet to win, having tasted defeat to Alcaraz at the semi-final stage in both 2023 and 2024.
The Italian was serving a three-month suspension when the event was held in 2025, though he is back in Tennis Paradise this fortnight and is among the leading contenders to lift the men’s singles title.
After receiving an opening-round bye, Sinner will start his campaign against world No 109 Dalibor Srvinca, who came through qualifying before defeating James Duckworth in the first round.
Sinner’s campaign is set to start on Friday.
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