"My tennis is similar to Novak Djokovic's" - Jannik Sinner explains impact of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Serb on his game
Jannik Sinner has explained the impact of the Big-3 of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic on his game.
The aforementioned trio, with 20, 22, 24 singles titles, respectively, are the most successful male tennis players in history. They have arguably transceded the sport with their on-court achievements and rivalries with each other.
While Federer retired two years ago, Nadal is out injured and likely playing the last season of his illustrious career, while Djokovic is still going strong. The Serb, though, recently lost to Sinner at the Australian Open, his first loss at the event in 34 matches spanning six years.
The Italian - who went on to win his first Major title by beating Daniil Medvedev from two sets down - explained to MARCA why his game is more similar to Djokovic:
"I think my tennis is similar to Djokovic's. We both played well from the back of the court, but we tried to go to the net. The way we slide on the track is also similar. I feel lucky to have met them."
Sinner added that he tried to learn as much as possible from the other two Big-3 members too, considering their dominance on the Grand Slam scene:
"Roger is no longer here, but when the three of them were there, I tried to watch what they did in the gym, outside of it. ... Learn as much as possible from them. I feel lucky that they are on the tour because they have won more 'Grand Slam' titles than anyone else."
Sinner is 3-7 overall against the Big 3, which includes 3-4 against Djokovic and 0-3 against Nadal. The Italian never met Federer on tour, while all three of his losses to Nadal came on clay, including two at Roland Garros, where the Spaniard is a 14-time champion.
How Jannik Sinner beat Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open
Meeting Novak Djokovic for the fourth time in just over two months, Jannik Sinner notched up his third win over the legendary Serb.
History was against Sinner when he locked horns with the all-time Open Era Grand Slam title leaders in the Australian Open semifinals last month. Novak Djokovic was 10-0 at this stage of the tournament, but Sinner produced two sets of sublime quality, leading 6-1, 6-2 as his opponent knew not what hit him.
The 36-year-old fought back in the third, saving a championship point in the tiebreak to extend the contest, but Sinner was not going to be denied. Riding a lone break of serve in the fourth, the Italian calmly served out the biggest win of his young career to reach his first Grand Slam final.
Impressively, he didn't allow Djokovic - arguably the sport's best-ever returner - a look on his serve, not conceding a break point. Two days later, Jannik Sinner beat Medvedev from two sets down to become the first Italian man to win the Australian Open.