Jannik Sinner deserved to close the season at the top of the ATP ranking, having shown a really impressive consistency throughout this season. The worlds number 1 reached at least the quarterfinals in all tournaments played in 2024, achieving good results even when he did not express his best tennis (as during spring).
The 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria has won seven titles this year and suffered only six defeats, three of which against his great rival Carlos Alcaraz. The 2-time Grand Slam champion has continued to work on his game in these months and has become much more complete than 2023, adding unpredictable variations and becoming more skilled near the net.
The Italian ace is ready to play in the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, hoping to improve on last years final. Jannik was defeated by Novak Djokovic last year, coming quite tired in the final after a very busy week. Sinner chose a different schedule in 2024, not defending the title in Vienna and also skipping the Rolex Paris Masters due to a virus. The world number 1 has practiced well these days and is adapting to the surface, which he defined slower than last edition.
The Italian champion was included in the group named after Ilie Nastase along with Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz and Alex de Minaur. The world number 1 will make his debut against the Australian, who never caused him any problems during their rivalry. Medvedev and Fritz seem to be more dangerous opponents on this surface, but both will start clearly underdog. The Russian has lost seven of his last eight matches to Sinner, while the American was defeated in the final of the 2024 US Open.
A personalized line
Janniks amazing rise was noticed by everyone and helped to ignite the passion for tennis in his country. Its no coincidence that Nike is ready to launch a personalized line dedicated to the 2-time Grand Slam champion, as anticipated in a video released on social media.
Everyone hopes that Jannik will not be disqualified from the doping case. This would be a considerable damage to the image of the best player in the world, who will collaborate with the authorities in the coming months. The 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria was found innocent by ITIA just before the US Open, but WADA decided to appeal and ask for a disqualification of one to two years.
In a recent interview with Mowmag, former Italian ace Daniele Bracciali confided that he was not very optimistic about it: 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 continued: 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.
I think all Italians have understood who Sinner is, even if there will always be some detractors, but the right solution would be acquittal. For him, a period with a lot of tension would finally end, even though he is managing it almost perfectly. From the point of view of the rankings, however, if the disqualification were to arrive, it would change little for him, because with a big point advantage,Jannik can easily remain still for three or four months.
A new team
Many believe that the WADAs decision to appeal against the acquittal was politically motivated. The world number 1 has proven his innocence and that he could not avoid contamination in any way, besides having removed Umberto Ferrara and Giacomo Naldi from his team.
After the US Open, Jannik started working with Marco Panichi and Ulises Badio, two former collaborators of 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic. The CAS will be responsible for issuing the final verdict on this case, which may set a very important precedent for the future. The final ruling is expected to be announced in early 2025.
