Jannik Sinner shares immediate reaction to reaching the Italian Open quarter-finals
Jannik Sinner’s incredible run continued at the Italian Open as he defeated his compatriot Andreas Pellegrino in straight sets in Rome.
Sinner is yet to get out of second gear at his home event, but he still has not dropped a single set en route to the last eight of the Italian event.
He defeated Pellegrino 6-2, 6-3 to continue his brilliant run at Masters events and he will now await the winner of Andrey Rublev and Nikoloz Basilashvili.
In his post-match interview, the Italian revealed: “Derbies are always very different. Obviously I’m very happy about the outcome, but at the same time I’m very happy for him. He is working very hard. We played seven years ago on a definitely smaller court and it’s nice.
“From an Italian point of view, amazing that there are so many Italians and unfortunate at the same time because it’s the round of 16. It’s been a very good match from both of us and hopefully I’m ready for the quarter-finals.
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“I can be very happy. Tricky conditions. Today I think there was a bit less wind, but at the beginning it was not easy. I’m happy how I’m trying to handle this kind of situations.
“Stages are getting bigger and bigger and I am happy to put myself in these positions. Tomorrow a day off is important to me, trying to rest, and hopefully I’m ready.”
While Sinner continue to progress through the tournament with little drama, his fellow seeds are dropping like flies at the Italian event.
Prior to the last 16, the likes of Felix Auger-Aliassime, Novak Djokovic, Alex de Minaur, and Ben Shelton had already been defeated in the early stages.
Alexander Zverev was the only top five player left alongside Sinner, but he has also perished before the quarter-finals of the Masters event.
Zverev was defeated by Matteo Arnaldi in three sets to further open up the tournament for Sinner as he looks to win the Italian Open for the first time.
If Basilashvili defeats Rublev in the last 16, Sinner will have the chance to reach the final of the Italian Open without playing a single seed.
With Zverev now out of the competition, Sinner’s most likely opponent in the Italian Open final looks to be either Casper Ruud or Rafael Jodar.
Sinner will be confident of defeating both, as he has never been beaten by either man. He currently holds a 4-0 head-to-head record against Ruud.
Against Jodar, meanwhile, he has only played the talented Spaniard on one occasion. That came recently in the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open, which Sinner won comfortably in straight sets.
