Red-hot Jannik Sinner matches 48-year-old Open Era record, but insists ‘I’m not unbeatable’
The Jannik Sinner juggernaut rolled on at the Indian Wells Open as he won his 16th consecutive singles match at ATP Tour level to draw level with Adriano Panatta for the longest-winning streak by an Italian man in the Open Era.
Sinner brushed aside Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-3, 6-0 in his opening match at the ATP Masters 1000 event on Friday to take his winning streak for 2024 to 13 matches.
The Italian won seven matches en route to lifting the Australian Open trophy and followed it up with five wins during his Rotterdam Open title run and second-round win at Indian Wells.
His unbeaten streak also includes three singles matches at last November’s Davis Cup Finals as he led Italy to their first title since 1976.
And the year 1976 is also significant for Sinner’s latest milestone as that was the year when Panatta won 16 consecutive matches – a record that the 22-year-old has now matched.
Asked if he knows about the winning streak, Sinner replied: “Yeah, because they tell me all the time (smiling). But in the other way, as I said, for sure you have confidence, yes.
“As I said before, it can go fast to go in the wrong way. I just try to keep it as long as possible. Maybe it’s over in two days; maybe not. We cannot predict the future.
“We live in the present moment. Tomorrow I have one day off or I play doubles and then trying to prepare for the next singles match. The opponents, they know me much better now, so I have to be prepared. I think that’s also an exciting part.”
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Sinner, whose only defeat in his last 27 matches has come against Novak Djokovic at the ATP Finals, will look to get the outright Italian Open Era record when he takes on 25th seed Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round.
Does he feel invincible?
“No, I’m not unbeatable. I’m just well-prepared,” he said. “I worked really hard to be in this position. Obviously it’s a position where, you know, you dream of because, you know, winning a Grand Slam, that’s I think everyone’s dream, but in the other way, you know, you travel here, the conditions are different and then you have to find a way somehow.
We came here earlier trying to prepare it. I felt better day after day. As we saw today it can be breezy, and then it stops. You know, you have to be very, yeah, you have to see the situation and then trying to be ready.”
