With his triumph at the Masters 1000 in Shanghai, Jannik Sinner has confirmed that he is the best player in the world right now. The Italian ace has kept an impressive pace this season and deserves to finish 2024 at the top of the ATP ranking. The 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria lost a single set in the penultimate Masters 1000 of the season, in the third round against Tomas Martin Etcheverry. The two-time Grand Slam champion has raised his level from the round of 16, beating Ben Shelton - who had beaten him in Shanghai in 2023 - and Russian Daniil Medvedev for the seventh time in the last seven matches played against each other.
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In the semifinals he defeated Tomas Machac, who had eliminated Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals, before inflicting on the 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic his third consecutive defeat since last years Davis Cup Finals. The worldnumber 1 has suffered only six defeats in 2024 and his season is destined to enter the history of this sport. Jannik awaits to know his fate after WADA has appealed the acquittal of ITIA, demanding a disqualification for the Italian player from 1 to 2 years for negligence.
Sinner will soon fly to Saudi Arabia to play the 'Six Kings Slam', while not defending last years title in Vienna. His already unforgettable 2024 has been enhanced with a new great trophy, the Masters 1000 in Shanghai. A victory, yesterday against Novak Djokovic, record-man in the Chinese tournament, clear, undisputed, which puts even more point on the dominance of blue this season. Seven successes in the last 11 months. From the Slam wins to the Australian Open to the US Open, passing by the three 1000, in Miami, Cincinnati and precisely Shanghai.
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A true dominance
Sinner is now a certainty and his leadership in the standingwill be safe at least until the new season: "It was the usual granite Sinner, with which we continue to amaze ourselves, making things difficult easy. Nothing moves him from his goal, not even the sword of Damocles that he has for months", explained Paolo Bertolucci to the microphones of Sky, referring to the thorny doping case that involved a few months ago the Italian ace.
More than saying good and applaud him, we cannot do. There is only to thank him, because it is a precious gem of the Italian sport. He goes beyond tennis, he is like Alberto Tomba, Valentino Rossi and Federica Pellegrini. He won seven titles, two Slam and three 1000: his continuity is a crazy thing. Djokovic held a set and then with that wrong shot in the tie-break the match was over. The only thing missing is a smile, but it is clear that this ties in with the story known to all", he then clarified.
Sinner explained what the key to this success was. "People think that winning or succeeding is no problem, but its not true, because the situation I am in now off the court is obviously not comfortable. During this time I learned that success will never change me as a person, or as a player".
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"I try to stay as calm as possible and keep working hard, no matter if the week is good or bad, but I try to improve every day, every time I have the chance, trying new things, trying to see new things, In the worst case, by seeing what works and what does not work. I feel that this has had a great impact on me this year and I hope it will help me next year too," he concluded.
Nole's compliments
After the final of the Masters 1000 in Shanghai, Djokovic himself had to admit that Sinner was superior this season. "Hes improved his serve tremendously, I think that became a big weapon, the Serbian legend explained during the press conference. Hes just very aggressive from the baseline, as soon as hes got a shorter ball, hes taking the initiative. Just very solid from forehand and backhand, doesnt make too many mistakes, and just tries to take away the time from the opponent.
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You know, thats something that reminds me of myself throughout my career, thats what lve done for so many years consistently, you know, playing fast-paced tennis, taking away time from the opponent, kind of suffocating the opponent, if you want, in a certain way. Thats what you want, you want your opponents always to feel under pressure from your shots, from your speed, from your presence on the court. So hes got that, I mean, this year hes been so consistent, its really, really impressive, Djokovic continued.
