ATP Tour: Jannik Sinner bounces back from early-season setback to dominate circuit

On a balmy February evening in Doha, vain. AFP Jannik Sinner lost a quarterfinal match to 20-year-old Jakub Mensik. It had only been a couple of weeks since Sinner had succumbed in a five-set Australian Open semifinal to 38-year-old Novak Djokovic.

Suddenly, one-half of Sin-Caraz, the duopoly that had dominated men’s tennis over the last couple of years, was on vulnerable terrain. Observers wondered if this Italian wonder kid, the owner of four major titles and clinical dismantler of rivals, was besieged by a funk. Yet, even as the headlines swirled and the tongues wagged, the laconic giant appeared unperturbed.

“Every player goes through ups and downs,” said Sinner after the upset in Doha. “I’ve had two incredible years, and now I’m having a little ‘down’, but it’s not something that worries me.”


A couple of months on, Sinner probably has a quiet chuckle to himself when reflecting on that phase. In 17 matches since, he has lost all of one set en route to capturing three straight ATP Masters 1000 titles. From the “Sunshine double” on the hard courts in Indian Wells and Miami, to the Monte Carlo Masters on clay, where he took apart Carlos Alcaraz in a straight sets final, and as bonus, usurped him in the rankings to reclaim the top spot.

“Every day I woke up and tried to improve and then tried to get better as a player,” Sinner reflected after his seventh win over Alcaraz. “Here we did day by day, trying to understand what the best game style is against every opponent, because I haven’t played the same kind of tennis against everyone. We changed small, small things.”

The “small, small things” that enabled Sinner’s resurrection from the blip that torpedoed the early part of his season are insurmountable challenges for his rivals. Sample this: The Italian has a jaw-dropping service hold rate of 94% over the course of this hat-trick of tournament wins, essentially wrecking his opponent’s chances of staving off a relentless cascade of power.

Improving this aspect of Sinner’s game has been a major agenda item for Coach Darren Cahill, who reminded his ward that a player of his imposing height had all the tools to build a “powerful and unpredictable” serve.

While the serve has been formidable artillery, other aspects of Sinner’s game have also soared over these last few weeks. He has embraced pressure, winning tiebreakers at critical junctures such as the final at Indian Wells and the semifinals at Monte Carlo.

Deploying his blistering forehand and precise two-handed backhand, Sinner has controlled the tempo of his matches from the baseline, leaving opponents gasping for answers in the face of a machine-like barrage. For instance, against Alcaraz in their first clash of the year, Sinner struck deep returns with vicious topspin, neutralising Alcaraz on his favourite clay court surface.

“Sinner lost one match in the Middle East and we were like what is going on?,” joked former world No. 1 Andy Roddick on his podcast after watching the final. “But that’s an expectation created by your own shadow. It’s just absurd.”

With less than 400 points separating Sinner from Alcaraz at the top of the rankings, the next few weeks promise to be an enthralling dogfight for the top spot. The Madrid Open, starting later this week, offers Sinner the chance for an unprecedented fifth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 title on Alcaraz’s home turf.

However, the gold at the end of the rainbow is the French Open starting late May, where Sinner has a score to settle. Last year, he allowed three match points to slip away against Alcaraz in an epic summit clash that surely rankles him to this day. Now, with his weaponry functioning in fine fettle, the 24-year-old is primed for revenge and to complete a career slam.

That balmy Doha night sure seems a long, long time ago.