Jannik Sinner had arrived in Paris well in advance to play the last Masters 1000 of the season, but his run inBercy ended before it started. The world number 1 had to withdraw from the tournament because of a intestinal virus that hit him a few days ago and which prevented him from being 100% for the start of the tournament.
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The Italian ace has reassured everyone about his health and promised that he will be ready for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, where he is certainly the most anticipated player. The two-time Grand Slam champion - who will benefit from the support of his fans - plays very well in indoor conditions and already last year he had almost triumphed in the Finals losing only in the final against Serbian Novak Djokovic.
Janniks level has risen further from last season and now the Italian is the player to beat for all opponents. The results obtained by the 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria in 2024 were really impressive, as evidenced by the two Grand Slam titles, the three Masters 1000 and the only six losses suffered since January until today.
Memorable numbers
It is no coincidence that Sinner is already certain to finish the year at the top of the ATP ranking, despite his great rival Carlos Alcaraz winning two Major titles in 2024. The Italian ace not only wants to win the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, but also wants to drag Italy to its second straight Davis Cup Finals triumph.
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Jannik became the fourth player since 1990 to reach at least the quarter-finals in all ATP tournaments. No player had come this close to an impressive record of continuity achieved by the Big Three alone in the last thirty years. The incredible journey in this magical 2024 has allowed the blue to jump to number one in the world and win the first two Slam titles of his career.
Sinner has managed to make a net route in the 14 commitments played (in this special ranking are excluded the ATP Finals): in order champion at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle, Cincinnati, Us Open and Shanghai; finalist in Beijing; semi-finalist in Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo and Roland Garros; quarterfinals in Madrid, Wimbledon and Canada.
The first to succeed in 2005 was Roger Federer with a 14/14: he was champion at Doha, Rotterdam, Dubai, Indian Wells, Miami, Hamburg, Halle, Wimbledon, Cincinnati, US Open and Bangkok; reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open and Roland Garros; quarterbacks at Monte-Carlo.
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The second to repeat this feat was Novak Djokovic in that unforgettable 2011: during that season he managed to triumph in Melbourne, Dubai, Indian Wells, Miami, Belgrade, Madrid, Rome, Wimbledon, Canada and Us Open; pushing in the final in Cincinnati; Semi-final at Roland Garros and Basel; quarter-finals in Paris-Bercy. Four years later the Serbian has given the encore with a 15/15, which could be matched by the Italian if he participated in Bercy: in the year 2015 champion at the Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Rome, Wimbledon, Us Open, Beijing, Shanghai and Paris-Bercy; finalist in Dubai, Roland Garros, Canada and Cincinnati; fourth in Doha.
Rafael Nadal joined the list in 2018 with a 9/9: titles at Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Rome, Roland Garros and Canada; semi-finalist at Wimbledon and the US Open; quarterfinal at the Australian Open and Madrid. Many fans now expect Carlos Alcaraz to join the very small club.
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A still open wound
Despite playing a really exceptional season, the world number 1 was affected by the doping case that has affected him in recent months. The controversy is still open, following the decision of WADA to appeal against the acquittal. In a recent interview with Mowmag, former Top 50 Daniele Bracciali opened up on Sinners case: How will the Sinner case end? Unfortunately, knowing the environment of WADA and ITIA, I believe that a disqualification will almost certainly arrive.
It is not right to disqualify a tennis player if it is found that he has not taken drugs to improve performance and in the case of the Italian it really has not changed anything.Objective responsibility in this situation is a real scam. He is very strong and he has shown it. But there is no doubt that a similar decision would weigh on him, even if we do not know how he could eventually react.
From a mental point of view, lets not forget how heavy a sentence like that can be, because Sinner is also human, but perhaps many forget this. In his case, it is even heavier because he knows in his heart that he has done nothing wrong. How do you metabolize the fact that objective responsibility can lead to disqualification? It is really hard.
