‘Jannik Sinner is improved version of Novak Djokovic’ claim laughed at by Wimbledon winner
Former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli laughed in disbelief at the suggestion Jannik Sinner is an “improved version” of Novak Djokovic.
Sinner defeated Djokovic 7-6(4), 6-3 in the final of the 2024 Shanghai Masters last week to claim his seventh title of a stellar 2024 season. He now holds a 4-4 record against the Serbian legend, having won the pair’s last three encounters.
The Italian claimed his maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January before winning the US Open in September to complete a hard-court major double.
The 23-year-old has won three Masters 1000 crowns this year, having triumphed in Miami and Cincinnati prior to Shanghai, while he also secured ATP 500 titles in Rotterdam and Halle.
Sinner has been the world No 1 since climbing to the ATP top spot for the first time in June and he clinched the year-end No 1 position during his run in Shanghai.
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Sinner’s game has led to comparisons with Djokovic, with tennis legend Boris Becker recently claiming the Italian is similar to the 24-time Grand Slam winner “from a purely stylistic point of view.”
“As for ‘Nole’, he’s similar. His style is very similar, especially in terms of consistency. Jannik never goes under par, he always plays at a very high level and brings top-quality tennis to the court,” Becker said.
“He puts great speed into his shots and pushes his opponents away from the baseline. When Nole was a little younger, up until a couple of years ago, he was able to dominate baseline rallies thanks to his fundamentals, footwork and speed.”
Following Sinner’s Shanghai triumph, a journalist on the Sans Filet tennis talk show labelled Sinner “the new Djokovic” and claimed the Italian is “an improved version” because he is “more impactful and more aggressive.”
In response to a clip from the show on X, Bartoli laughed in incredulity at the assertion that Sinner is a better version of Djokovic.
“What? Djokovic’s improved version? LOL (followed by a laughing emoji). It’s still incredible, this culture of the moment,” the former world No 7 wrote.
After Sinner’s US Open victory in September, Bartoli predicted how many majors Sinner, Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will have at the end their careers.
“My number would be between 15 and 18 Grand Slam titles for each of them, Sinner and Alcaraz,” the Frenchwoman told Sky Sports.
“I just think Novak Djokovic is going to go for maybe two or three more, will end up at 26 or 27, and then after that you really have, for me, the two most complete players.
“There’s lot of players who have one surface where they are really not that good.”
