‘It would be very hard to bet against Sinner’: Somdev Devvarman

Italy’s Jannik Sinner hits a return to Russia’s Andrey Rublev during the Rome Open. Sinner went on to win the tournament. PIC/AFP

Italy's World No. 1 Jannik Sinner has been in fantastic form in the lead up to the French Open and former India tennis player Somdev Devvarman believes it's difficult to look past him as the hot favourite for the men's singles title in Paris. The marquee clay court Grand Slam tournament gets underway at Roland Garros on May 24.

Devvarman, 41, who won a gold medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, said that while Sinner's side of the draw does have some challenges, all odds are in his favour, especially since his rival and World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn due to a wrist injury. The Italian ace became the first player to win six consecutive Masters 1000 events with his triumph at the Italian Open last week.

Somdev Devvarman

"Pre-tournament, with Alcaraz missing, with how dominant he has been in Monte Carlo and Rome [wins at both], it's looking like he is the out-and-out favourite. The question really is, who is going to beat Jannik Sinner? For that, you have to look at his side of the draw. There's [Matteo] Berrettini, [Stefanos] Tsitsipas maybe, although he hasn't been in good form. The seeds in the section are [Luciano] Darderi, who is a phenomenal player, but Sinner hasn't lost to an Italian in almost 20 matches or so.

There's [Tallon] Griekspoor, he's also got a lot of work to do before he gets there. Then, there is [Ben] Shelton, [Frances] Tiafoe and [Alexander] Bublik, but clay is not their favourite surface. So, if I was a betting man right now, it would be very hard for me to bet against Sinner," Devvarman told mid-day during a virtual interaction organised by Sony Sports Network.

When asked about the media protests from some of the top players like Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff and Sinner to demand better prize money for the French Open, the Arjuna Awardee admitted that there must be change, but felt the media protests are unnecessary.

"We have to reform, don't we? From a player perspective, the reform has been happening slowly, but it has been happening. The media part, I don't agree with. There's different ways to handle it. It's also good to do the media and put your story out there. Whether that's you feeling it's unfair treatment or whatever. The media should be used like a tool by the players to get their opinions out because that's important," he said.