Jannik Sinner achieved a significant career milestone by capturing his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.
“I like to dance in the pressure storm,” said Jannik Sinner on Sunday night in Melbourne. “I like it, because that’s where most of the time I bring out my best tennis.”
The Italian certainly proved that on the biggest stage of all at the Australian Open, where he mounted a stunning comeback to clinch his maiden Grand Slam title. The 22-year-old Sinner held firm after Daniil Medvedev’s blistering start in the championship match to seal a famous 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 victory.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC CLINCHES RECORD-EXTENDING EIGHTH ATP YEAR-END NO. 1
“I am very proud,” said Sinner at the trophy ceremony inside Rod Laver Arena. “It was a very tough match. He started off really well, he moved me around the court. I could not make my game plan work… I am really happy with how I corrected it. There are so many emotions right now. I have to sit down and process it, but it is an unbelievable feeling.”
Sinner’s triumph was another demonstration of how he has taken his game to another level in the past 12 months. The World No. 4, who snapped 10-time champion Novak Djokovic’s 33-match winning streak at the Australian Open in the semi-finals, has now won 20 of his past 21 tour-level matches. He is eager to keep adding to his success in the wake of his breakthrough major title.
“I had very good results, I think, that made me believe that I can compete against the best players in the world,” said Sinner. “But [here] I still have to process it, because beating Novak in the semis and then today Daniil in the final, they are tough players to beat. So it’s a great moment for me and my team, but we also know that we have to improve if we want to have another chance to hold a big trophy again.”
Photo/Jannik Sinner/X
ATP communications contributed to this column
One thought