4 milestones Jannik Sinner achieved after beating Novak Djokovic in Australian Open 2024 semifinal
Jannik Sinner pulled off an astonishing win over Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open semifinal, taking the match in four sets 6-1, 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-3.
The Italian not only booked his spot in a maiden Grand Slam final but also broke a near-two-decade streak of at least one member of the ‘Big 3’ of Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer playing in the Australian Open final.
Sinner also became the first player to hand Djokovic a defeat at Melbourne Park since 2019 and achieved a handful of other big milestones on the way. Here, we list four such feats achieved by the youngster:
#1 First Italian player to reach the Australian Open singles final
With his win over Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner has become the first Italian player in the sport’s history to reach the Australian Open men’s singles final.
Notably, Sinner’s countryman Matteo Berrettini came agonizingly close to reaching the final Down Under a couple of years ago but came up just short against eventual champion Rafael Nadal. The Italian went down in four sets 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 3-6.
Sinner, meanwhile, will look to join fellow Italians Nicola Pietrangeli (1959, 1960 French Open) and Adriano Panatta (1976 French Open) as a Grand Slam champion.
#2 Youngest men’s singles finalist at Australian Open since Novak Djokovic in 2008
At 22 years and 163 days old, Jannik Sinner has become the youngest Australian Open men’s singles finalist since a certain Djokovic way back in 2008.
The Serb had won his maiden Grand Slam title Down Under that year as a 21-year-old. He reached the final without dropping a set and ousting defending champion Roger Federer in the semifinal.
Sinner, meanwhile, has defeated the likes of Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachahnov and Sebastian Baez in his run. He has now also ousted the defending champion, Djokovic himself, in the last-four encounter.
#3 Only behind Rafael Nadal in winning more of his first six matches against World No. 1s
Jannik Sinner has a stellar record against players ranked World No. 1, having won four of his first six matches against top-ranked players. The youngster’s record is second only to Nadal, who won five of his first matches against World No. 1s.
Sinner’s first win over a World No. 1 came at last year’s Miami Masters when he beat Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinal. He has since beaten Djokovic thrice while he was ranked atop the rankings — the ATP Finals (round-robin), the Davis Cup and the Australian Open semifinal.
The youngster’s two losses came against Djokovic as well, in his first match against a top-ranked player at the 2021 Monte Carlo Masters and the summit of the 2023 ATP Finals.
#4 Jannik Sinner is first Italian male player to defeat a World No. 1 at Grand Slams
Jannik Sinner also became the first male Italian player to beat a World No. 1 at a Grand Slam event with his semifinal win over Novak Djokovic.
Until this point, Italian male players had gone 0-23 against the top-ranked opponents on the big stage. The stat goes back to 1973 when electronic rankings were first introduced in tennis.
Sinner, notably, had himself never come up against a World No. 1 while playing at a Grand Slam event before his Australian Open semifinal showdown against the Serb.