Carlos Alcaraz says he will be rooting for Paris Saint-Germain in Saturday’s Champions League Final but French Open rival Jannik Sinner has taken a more neutral approach to the debate.
The two tennis stars were quizzed about the upcoming match following their first round wins. PSG will take on Inter Milan on Saturday evening in Munich where a staggering £21.07M will be given to the winning team. The French team have never won the event but Inter Milan has been victorious on three occasions, the most recent being in 2010.
PSG players Achraf Fakimi, Nuno Mendes, Désiré Doué and João Neves attended Roland Garros on Monday where they were seen watching Alcaraz’s first round match. The defending champion defeated Giulio Zeppieri in straight sets.
“It’s gonna be a really good match,” Alcaraz said of the Champions League Final during his on-court interview.
“As a fan of football obviously, I’m gonna watch the football… I’m gonna support PSG for different reasons. I know (Achraf) Hakimi. Obviously the coach of PSG (Luis Enrique) as well.
“It’s difficult because I know a few players for Inter as well. But I’m gonna be with PSG in this match.”
Alcaraz, who is a real Madrid Fan, also spoke about the topic during this year’s draw ceremony in Paris. Speaking to reporters, the four-time Grand Slam winner said he has ‘told everyone that he is supporting PSG.’ Coincidentally, also present at the draw ceremony was Ousmane Dembele, who plays as a striker or winger for the team.
Meanwhile, Italy’s Jannik Sinner tried to dodge a question about the Champions League final after he beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 6-3, 7-5, in a late-night clash. Among those watching his match was Gianluigi Donnarumma, who the world No.1 described as ‘the best goalkeeper you (PSG) have’ during his on-court speech.
“Don’t put me in this situation, I’m in trouble,” Sinner joked with reporters when asked to pick a team to support in Saturday’s final.
“As an Italian, I say that it would be nice to see an Italian team win.
“Donnarumma is also here (at Roland Garros), we’ve been good friends for a long time, we know each other well and for me it was an honour to see him in my box.
“He too will have a fairly important match to play in a few days… We are focused on ourselves and our commitments, but we support each other and that’s nice.”
The Champions League Final is scheduled to start at 8pm UK time on Saturday. As it currently stands, both Alcaraz and Sinner are not scheduled to play on that day. The duo will play their second round matches on Wednesday.
