Jannik Sinner: The Reigning King of Tennis as the Circuit Shifts to Clay

The circuit is at its knees. Even his most ardent opponents must recognize it: the boss, in 2024, is called Jannik Sinner. “He’s undoubtedly the best,” admitted Novak Djokovic on Saturday about the Italian. Winner of the Australian Open in January but also of the tournaments in Rotterdam and Miami, the new world number 2 devastated everything in his path, with the exception of the title at Indian Wells where the conditions favored the return to grace of Carlos Alcaraz.

But tennis also finds its charm in very distinct periods. Over the last six months, the hard court has been Sinner’s favorite field of expression. For the next four months, apart from the – too – short interlude on grass, it is clay that will redistribute the cards. Between Monte-Carlo and the Olympic Games (to be followed on Eurosport) which will have Roland-Garros as decorum, there will be plenty to do on earth: a Grand Slam tournament, three Masters 1000s, an Olympic coronation to be won, not to mention prestigious ATP 500 (Barcelona, ​​Hamburg).

Landmarks on earth, despite everything

How many will fall into Sinner’s hands? Listening to it, not much. “It’s going to be hard,” he said at a press conference on Sunday. “It’s not the surface where I feel most comfortable. I feel better on hard. Which doesn’t mean that I’m not a good player on earth.” In view of his personal record, it is difficult to contradict him. Of his 13 career titles, only one has been obtained on this surface, in Umag in 2022 against… Carlos Alcaraz in the final. For the rest, his journeys on earth are neither alarming nor transcendent.

“It’s a surface on which he has not managed to prove the same things to himself, analyzed Justine Hénin after his coronation in Miami. We will have to give him time on this surface. He will be able to play the leading roles there, I don’t “I don’t see any major obstacles to this at the moment.” Mentally, the milestones reached by the Italian recently should allow him to prolong his state of grace.

Henin: “Sinner has developed a fairly phenomenal capacity for adaptation”

“Over the last three months, he has become impeccable tactically, he hardly takes any risks anymore,” says our consultant Mats Wilander. “He plays fast, faster than anyone on the circuit. So he can be the best on no matter what surface. If he feels good and has confidence in himself, he can beat anyone.”

I am convinced that Jannik will also be very competitive on gravel

Unlike others, notably certain American or Australian players, Sinner is not allergic to ocher. He simply moved away from it in his growth process. “I am confident that I will be able to play well on earth too. But it takes time. From 14 to 20 years old, I trained a lot on earth. Then, after a little less,” he said. he thus recalled at a press conference.

His quality of movement, undoubtedly one of his most visible progress in recent months, should help him in his quest for sensations. For Sinner, who has made the Olympics an important objective of his season, Monte-Carlo must be a start, more than a real goal to achieve. A bit like Novak Djokovic, who fell several times into the trap of the earth transition in Monte-Carlo, the Italian must above all use the Monaco tournament as a basis for adjustment.

“If I were Sinner’s coach, I would like to see him continue his tennis in the same way, continues Wilander. I don’t think he will be capable of winning Roland-Garros if he starts playing a little more passively, if he begins to refuse to take control of the exchange. That’s good news, Simone Vagnozzi, said nothing else to Repubblica this week. “When you find a path that works, you don’t need to change, explained one of the Italian’s coaches. We have to continue on this path. I am convinced that Jannik will also be very competitive on clay. After everything, that was the goal: to be able to go all the way in all tournaments.” From Monte Carlo?

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2024-04-08 21:09:00
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