Italy's Jannik Sinner
Credit: Reuters Photo
When the tennis season began in January, the spotlight was shared by Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz. Old warhorse Djokovic, like he’d done all his life, continued to defy age and logic in 2023 by bagging three Grand Slams, the season-ending ATP Finals before signing off the year as the number one ranked player in the world for a record-extending eighth time. He surpassed Rafael Nadal (22) for most Slams by taking his tally to 24, matching Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 across genders, showing at 36 years of age the passion and drive to be the best in the world was still burning bright.
Alcaraz, the only man to beat Djokovic at a Slam in 2023 when he stunned the irrepressible Serb in a classic Wimbledon final, finished the season as No. 2 after playing musical chairs for the coveted No. 1 spot at various times. The 21-year-old Spaniard, blessed with an all-court game and mental fortitude betraying his age, was tipped to take the flame from Djokovic and become the new standard bearer for men’s tennis. While Alcaraz sort of accomplished that by winning two more Slams this year to take his tally to four, beating none other than Djokovic in the French Open and Wimbledon finals to signal a change of guard, it’s the phenomenal rise of Jannik Sinner from a supporting artist to a superstar that’s been the talking point of 2024.
Sinner, hailed as the one for the future following his rapid progress on the ATP circuit since switching to tennis from football as a teen, had a decent 2023 but nowhere close to what Djokovic’s and Alcaraz's. He was a quarterfinalist at three Slams, a semifinalist at US Open and lost the final of the ATP Finals in Turin — a historical city in his home country of Italy. He kept coming close but just couldn’t find the code to unlock success. It looked like he may end up becoming like those youngsters who came close to threatening the iron-fisted dominance of Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer but just couldn’t cross the last step. Cut to the present, it’s the other way around now with Sinner playing the tennis of his life and the chasing pack struggling to find a way to stop his juggernaut.
It all started at the Australian Open where he came back from two sets down to defeat Russian Daniil Medvedev in a thrilling final, becoming the first from his country to triumph Down Under. That win against all odds gave him the confidence that he could be the champion many predicted and the 23-year-old has never looked back since then, especially towards the last leg of the season where he won the US Open despite being embroiled in a doping controversy for his second major victory. The icing on the cake was the year-end No. 1 ranking, a hallmark of his consistency, and securing the ATP Finals without dropping a set, becoming the first person since Ivan Lendl in 1986 to do so — both achieved in Turin. The cherry on top would be if Italy successfully defend the Davis Cup where he’s the driving force for the Europeans. Now, that’s what stepping one’s game up is!
“Whatever we can catch, we take, and the rest we learn. I think that was the mentality we approached this whole year, trying to raise my level in specific moments, which I've done throughout this year,” said Sinner after winning the ATP Finals in front of a raucous home crowd. “I'm very happy about that because it's a very nice way to finish off an incredible season. A lot of wins, a lot of titles. I tried to make myself better than last year, to find the keys to win this final. I'm very happy to have handled this pressure and to share this success with the Italian crowd.”
The major factors behind Sinner’s rise have been adding power to his shots, intelligence to his game and strength to his mind. Sinner’s playing style is somewhat similar to that of Djokovic — a combination of strong defence, aggression and tactical awareness. He’s solid around the baseline, strong both on the forehand and the backhand, can generate lethal power at will and shot selection is top-notch, barely committing any unforced errors. He hardly lets anything past him and his ability to switch on the nitro mode effortlessly has often left many opponents gasping for breath. More importantly, the serve, a key weapon in the armoury of any player, has become more potent too.
“Everything in his game improved,” World No. 6 Casper Ruud said of Sinner. “He's very serious about what he does. It's inspiring. You feel like unless you hit a ball with really good depth or close to the sidelines — and even if you hit close to the sidelines but not fast enough — he's going to rip it back at you. Jannik hits a faster ball than Novak. He doesn't let you breathe. With Novak, you can play rallies. I'm not going to say it's easier to play Novak because he's the best in history. At least with Novak, you can play more rallies and not be terrified of Novak ripping a bomb down the line or cross-court. You don't realise how fast Jannik plays unless you watch him play live and you're there in the stadium.”
World No. 4 Taylor Fritz, who lost the US Open final and title clash of ATP Finals to Sinner, said there’s very little one can do when the Italian is in a mood. “I go into these matches expecting him to hit incredible shots. When it happens, you just tell yourself there's nothing you can really do.”
Sinner’s rapid progress isn’t without a blot though. He twice tested positive for traces of steroid clostebol in March although in August he was cleared of any intentional wrongdoing by an independent tribunal constituted by International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), which handles anti-doping and corruption in tennis. The tribunal found his explanation that clostebol entered his system unintentionally through a massage from his physiotherapist, who had used a spray containing the steroid to treat his own cut finger. The tribunal’s clean chit didn’t please World Anti-Doping Agency, who have appealed the decision and a final ruling is expected from the Court of Arbitration for Sport around March.
In fact, some from the fraternity too hit out at the ATP for protecting Sinner, simply because he’s a top player and the sport is in need of future stars following the retirement of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and the slowdown of Djokovic. There was a lot of noise about his exoneration ahead of the US Open but Sinner, an extremely private person off the court, showed his mental fortitude by letting none of these rumblings affect him. In fact, post those accusations is when Sinner started playing some divine tennis, almost at the level of Djokovic and Nadal at their peak.
Sinner’s major challenges will come in 2025. Having won so much this season, expectations will be high on whether the Italian can sustain it or further push the button of excellence. And as he attempts to do it, there’ll be nervousness as well with the CAS verdict on WADA appeal expected in March. If the CAS verdict goes against him, he could be staring at a potential ban. Sinner will be hoping he comes out clean so that he can get more trophies to embellish his burgeoning cabinet.