Jannik Sinner lost to Carlos Alcaraz at the 2024 Roland Garros, and he explained after the match that it had nothing to do with his hip.
Neither Sinner nor Alcaraz looked spectacular in their semi-final match at the Court Philippe-Chatrier, as they combined for nearly 100 unforced errors. Alcaraz left a better impression than Sinner, though neither was at their peak.
Both experienced some issues with cramping, and the Italian, at times, looked very flat. After doctors had previously advised him not to play at Roland Garros, he was asked whether the hip had something to do with his loss.
He rubbished that claim, explaining that he moved well. For the most part, he's right because he did move fairly well, but he didn't play as sharply as he could in the moments when he really needed to.
"Hip was okay. The more goes on, the right hip doesn't have the strength of the left hip. It's normal sometimes I feel a little bit, especially after two-and-a-half hours and until the four hours, but this is no excuse. I was moving good."
Alcaraz won the match simply because he was able to find the better level when the match was being decided. He was slightly better in the fourth set and quite clearly better in the fifth set, which is why he won the match.
Whether the hip bothered Sinner or not, the Spaniard was able to find a higher level of tennis when it mattered, and that's why he won. Now, it's time for Sinner to rest up and recover ahead of the grass season, when he'll be heavily favored to do something great, especially at Wimbledon, where he historically played really well.
As for Alcaraz, he will play in the final against Alexander Zverev on Sunday with a chance to win a third Grand Slam trophy, putting himself up 3-1 on Sinner in those trophies.