Two instances define the current Wimbledon champion, Jannik Sinner.
It was the semi-final of the 2023-24 Davis Cup. Italy were up against Serbia, with Novak Djokovic taking on Sinner. By then, Djokovic had overtaken Rafael Nadal in relation to winning the most number of majors by a male tennis player. He had also collected three majors in 2023 and was by far the best player of that year. At 5-4 in the third set, Djokovic had a match point too. At that moment, very few would have given Sinner the chance to make a comeback from that precarious position.
As it turned out, Sinner didn’t just hold his serve but broke Djokovic and posted a thrilling win. The subplot to that victory was Djokovic had registered a come-from-behind win in the 2022 Wimbledon against the same player. More than a year later, Sinner also had championship points against his arch-rival Carlos Alcaraz at the French Open.
Unfortunately, Sinner came second best after a titanic five-hour battle. Not surprisingly, there were murmurs that Alcaraz might have a psychological edge over Sinner. After all, Alcaraz had defeated him five times in a row. Their very next meeting was the Wimbledon final. With Alcaraz sealing the first set, you again wondered whether he has the mental edge over his famed opponent. It wasn’t to be as Sinner dug deep into the reservoirs of his willpower and clinched the next three sets to take home the coveted trophy.
The above-mentioned matches tell something about Sinner’s strength of character. In the world of sports, certain losses leave scars on a player’s psyche for a lifetime. But in a matter of just over a month, Sinner erased the fine lines of a heartbreaking loss to usurp the same player and found salvation on the hallowed turf of Wimbledon.
Sinner’s game isn’t just about having the mental ability to bounce back from gut-wrenching losses, but he also has explosive tools. He has the heaviest backhand on tour by a fair margin. Even on occasions when he doesn’t get the placement right with his backhand wing, the opponent struggles to retrieve.
He can also create unbelievable angles on his forehand wing. At 5-4 and 40-15 in the second set of the Wimbledon final, from a seemingly out-of-court position, Sinner created a jaw-dropping angle on his cross-court forehand and won the point. To get to the opponent’s forehand so late and still generate that kind of racquet speed encapsulated his impressive skill and athleticism. Not to forget that Sinner’s second serve has turned out to be his unsung weapon.
Over the years, Sinner has also improved his movement and net game on grass. Just transport yourself back to the 2025 Wimbledon and you can scroll through numerous examples to testify to it. In the semi-final versus Djokovic, he moved back and forth – from net to baseline and back to net – and then calmly hit the overhead smash to make it 40-15 and gain a set point.
In a nutshell, Sinner has ticked all the right boxes in the last couple of years. And he has been aptly rewarded with four majors. Just a mere glimpse at his burgeoning potential, and you begin to ponder how many grand slams he could end up with? 10? 15? Or even more? Of course, quietly, somewhere, Alcaraz would be whispering that he is still around.
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