History repeats baseliner vs volleyer

In the final analysis of the blockbuster Roland Garros clash between World No 1 & 2, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, in which the latter ultimately lifted the ‘Coupe De Mousqetaire’, it’s inevitable, every tennis pundit across the globe, has thrown their penny's worth into the pot, mostly hedging their bets.

But not so former No 1, American John McEnroe, also considered  No 1 in the commentary box.

As a heavyweight, McEnroe, like President Trump, is unafraid to stir things up: His seismic observation was that both Sinner and Alcaraz played better in this match, than GOAT Rafael Nadal, in his prime.

He stopped short of leaving Sinner out of the equation altogether. What we in fact were witnessing was history repeating itself, ie your proverbial sledgehammer baseliner- Sinner- versus  your mercurial volleyer, Alcaraz.

It was after all McEnroe, who in his generation, represented the volleyer and Bijorn Borg, the baseliner, in all their epic showdowns.

And thereafter we saw Roger Federer the volleyer tilting his lance at Nadal, the all powerful baseliner.

McEnroe no doubt sees himself in Alcaraz, the man who has made volleying fashionable once again and spawned an entire crop of youngsters equally comfortable at net-  Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jacob Mensik, Ben Shelton, Joao Fonseca, Holger Rune, et al, unlike many of their predecessors.

Lest we forget, Federer attributed his 8th Wimbledon title to he being the only one at the time, “who knew how to wield the volley.”

There is a famous Australian amateur, who made the observation, a good volleyer would always beat an entrenched baseliner over five sets, with one provisio, your first serve must be firing.

To a large extent, Alcaraz’s wasn’t for at least two sets, but such is his superior ability- and intent- to move forwards and backwards on a court, as opposed to horizontally, he prevailed- over five sets.

That said, all hail Nadal: As the second youngest player (since Nadal in 1990), Justin Engel a 17 year old German, has just emulated the Spaniard in winning his first Tour level match on all surfaces ie clay, grass and hard courts.

Engel shocked American Alex Michelsen 6-4, 6-4, In Stuttgart in joining an elite group of teen sensations, who achieved this at a similar age namely, Alcaraz, Boris Becker, Layton Hewit and Nadal, all of whom went on to become No 1s.

Meanwhile, the grass court season kicked off in Stuttgart, with World No 3, Zverev, playing here for the first time since 2019 and after a disappointing Quarters loss to GOAT Novak Djokovic, at Roland Garros, making it through to another Last Eight, together with Americans, Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton and Czech, Jiri Lehecka.

However bigger news in the Wimbledon build up, is that Tommy Paul, American No 1 and Defending champion at Queens Club in London, will not be playing this year, on account of an abdominal injury, picked up at Roland Garros, when dumped out of the Quarters by Sinner.

He thereby forfeits his 500 ranking points; his co Finalist at Queens 2024, Lorenzo Musetti has sadly also withdrawn with similar injury issues, acquired on Parisian clay, that most punishing of surfaces.

Yet despite their absence, Queens will be peppered with volleying drawcards- Alcaraz, Jack Draper, Fritz, Rune,, Mensik, Alex De Minaur, Grigor Dimitrov, Shelton, Frances Tiafoe and Alexander Bublik.

The new WTA event on this hallowed home soil, reinstated Emma Raducanu -  dare I say, a baseliner- as British No 1 and the last Brit standing in the Quarters, after Katie Boulter’s first serve failed her, in her shock loss to lower ranked Russian, Diana Shnaider.