‘I Have Faced Jannik Sinner & Roger Federer

After his thrilling victory over Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon, Jannik Sinner confirmed his spot as the current king of men’s tennis. He still has some way to go, however, before he can be compared to the all-time greats of the sport, names like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Bjorn Borg, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras. And, of course, Roger Federer.

Tennis fans will never get to see the pair of Sinner and Federer clash on the court, at least with both men at the peak of their powers, but they have also never stood at opposite ends of the court from each other on the ATP Tour. Sinner turned pro in 2018, while Federer retired in 2022, but the two never got the chance to play against one another.

Sinner will now seek to defend his US Open title next month in New York, aiming for a fifth career Grand Slam. His dominance on the court, alongside Alcaraz, has drawn comparisons to the legendary rivalry between retired Swiss legend Federer and King of Clay Nadal, and opinions are rife over who would win in a fantasy match-up between the pair.

John Isner Discusses Prime Sinner vs Prime Federer

The American has shared the court with both during his career

One man who has faced both the Swiss and the Italian is John Isner, who made history in 2010 for being involved in the longest match in Wimbledon history (11 hours and five minutes in 2010, against Nicolas Mahut.)

His head-to-head record against Federer shows that he won only two of 10 meetings between the pair. Against Sinner, there have been three meetings, with Isner winning one. So he has faced both, and he has given his opinion on who would win between Sinner and Federer, if both men were in their prime.

Roger Federer’s Grand Slam results
Grand Slam	Best result
Australian Open	W (2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018)
French Open	W (2009)
Wimbledon	W (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017)
US Open	W (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)

Isner said on the Nothing Major Show: “What a dream match-up prime Federer vs Sinner would be right now.

“With Fed dicing the second serve return, serve volleying as well. I like Fed, the legend. But that would be a dream match-up.

“I like Fed in that!” fellow former professional and compatriot Steve Johnson added.

Earlier in the year, Sinner returned from a short doping ban ahead of the French Open, but his work alongside coach Darren Cahill is paying off in Isner’s eyes: “I think a lot of credit needs to go to his coach, Darren Cahill. That dude can coach. He admitted that something that they did work on a lot was going forward, coming in to the net more and trying to finish points at the net when they first started working.

“Two or three years ago, when they first started doing it, he didn’t look as comfortable. But he looked pretty comfortable here. Maybe it’s not the favourite part of his game, but he looks pretty comfortable going forward. He has improved so much since he started working with Cahill.

“I mean Sinner right now from the back of the court, you have to say, there is nobody better in the world. That is the reason why he is number one in the world.”

Offering his most likely player to challenge Sinner and Alcaraz, Isner commented: “I am going to say Taylor Fritz. I think he is the one guy who has the best chance. And I think right behind him, I think, is Ben Shelton.”