French Open 2025: John McEnroe explains how Novak Djokovic can defeat top seed Jannik Sinner to reach final at Roland-Garros

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TNT Sports expert John McEnroe thinks that Novak Djokovic can beat Jannik Sinner if their French Open semi-final goes the five-set distance. Djokovic, who is seeking a 25th major title in Paris, will take on the world No. 1 on Friday in a mouthwatering showdown, with the winner taking on either defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or the dangerous Italian Lorenzo Musetti in Sunday's final.

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TNT Sports expert John McEnroe has backed Novak Djokovic to beat world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the French Open semi-finals - if it goes to five sets.

Djokovic booked his place in the last four at Roland-Garros by beating last year’s defeated finalist Alexander Zverev in four sets on Wednesday evening, teeing up a showdown with Sinner.

Sinner breezed past Alexander Bublik in straight sets in his quarter-final tie, but he will face his toughest test of the tournament when he faces off against the 24-time Grand Slam champion on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

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McEnroe, who reached the final of the French Open in 1984, believes that over the full distance, Djokovic could have the edge over the Australian Open champion.

"Believe it or not, I think that if it went to a five setter, I would favour Novak, even though he's older, because Sinner hasn't played that much for a while," McEnroe said.

"I think there's a little bit of a question mark of how he would hold up physically and mentally, having not played a lot of matches, which is pretty amazing to say that if you think about it, when one guy's 38 and the other guy's 23.

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"He’s not going to be easy to deal with; I can promise you that. He knows that he's got a limited amount of chances left, I'm guessing unless he's Superman. Maybe he is. But Sinner’s going to be more aggressive than Zverev. He's not going to take it."

McEnroe did say, however, that Sinner’s youthful exuberance and hard-hitting style could set a pace that Djokovic might not be able to handle.

"Sometimes when you watched Carlos [Alcaraz] play Tommy Paul, you could say Paul was not 100%, so play it safer," McEnroe explained.

"But actually, what these guys do is play bigger - bigger because you have to make these super-fast movements because they're hitting it so hard. That actually is another way to break someone down. So I think Sinner's going to come out trying to play that way and see if Novak can stay with him."

Fellow TNT Sports pundit Tim Henman said that he had been "very impressed" with Sinner’s return to tennis’ top table since his three-month suspension for testing positive for a banned substance.

"I’ve been very impressed with the way he’s come back to the tour," Henman said. "To be back at the Italian Open in front of his own fans, that was the perfect scenario. He did look short on match play in that final against Alcaraz, but he said that it was absolutely ideal to play his biggest rival the week before a Grand Slam.

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"He worked well in that off-week. Coming through to the semi-finals looking in brilliant form. It’s a step up again. He’ll be delighted with where he’s at. He knows it’ll be a step up in class against Djokovic in the semi-finals."

Henman lauded Djokovic for the way he was able to deal with the loss of the first set against Zverev, the world No. 3, in the last eight.

"Zverev started well and got that first set, and you wondered how Djokovic would respond, but respond he did," Henman continued.

"He came away with those next three sets in such an impressive way and it was an important victory. A real statement to beat last year’s finalist in four sets. I don’t think it was the most demanding match.

"Djokovic has played a lot of tennis in the last two and a half weeks. He won his 100th title in Geneva, so slight question mark playing the week before a Slam, coming into five-set matches, but the way he’s come through the draw. He’s dropped just one set. He beat Cam Norrie easily. I think he is in perfect shape going into the final."

Henman also revealed a particular tactic that Djokovic could employ to try and defeat Sinner and reach the final in Paris.

"There were some long rallies last night and I was so impressed with the way that Djokovic went to the drop shot," Henman said.

"He played 43 drop shots and won such a good percentage of them. That may be a tactic that he has to use against Sinner. Sinner is so efficient. His ball-striking, his change of direction, he’s not scared to go down the line and take those shots on. This is definitely Djokovic’s toughest test, and Sinner goes in as the favourite."

In the other semi-final, Carlos Alcaraz, the second seed and reigning champion, takes on Lorenzo Musetti, the world No. 8.

Henman believes that while the Italian is in good form - winning 19 of his last 22 matches on clay - Alcaraz will prove to be his sternest test.

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"It’s a great match-up," Henman said. "Musetti was in the semi-finals of Madrid, Rome, and in the final of Monte Carlo, where he lost to Alcaraz.

"He’s playing brilliantly on clay. He’s looking and playing the part. Against Alcaraz is the toughest test on clay. He’s lost the last five times they’ve played. That’s going to be a huge task for Musetti.

"The bigger the moment, the tougher the opponent, the better he’s been. That win over Paul where he dropped just five games was a statement victory. He’s got so many strings to his bow; choosing the right shots at the right time, and his movement on clay is second to none.

"Alcaraz, out of the semi-finalists, is the player to beat."

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