Jannik Sinner and his rivals this week head to the Mediterranean coast for the first clay-court ATP Masters 1000 action of the year at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. Sinner arrives in the Principality with a 22-1 record for 2024 after his title run in Miami, but he is taking nothing for granted as he prepares for an opening clash against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina or Sebastian Korda.
“It is going to be very interesting to see how players deal with the situation to go from hard to clay,” said Sinner on Sunday. “It is important to practise in a certain way. The first week is very tough, you usually have strange results… The hard-court swing was really, really good for me, now we will see what I can do on clay.”
Sinner is not only playing for his third Masters 1000 title in Monte-Carlo. The 22-year-old is also looking to keep up the pressure as he bids to reach the top of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time. Current World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who is aiming for his first title of the year in Monaco, is expecting a new, improved Sinner on the clay.
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“Jannik is the best player in the world this year so far,” said Djokovic of his rival. “He has had tremendous success… In the important matches, the difference of Jannik in the past six months and before that is he is winning the big matches. He learned from his experiences before and made himself a tougher player. More of a big-time player.”
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