‘Jannik Sinner told me I was saying sorry too much’, reveals rising American ATP star

Ewan West 12 Dec 2024 12:20 PM

A smiling Jannik Sinner on the sidelines

Alex Michelsen has revealed a conversation he had with Jannik Sinner after losing to the world No 1 at the Cincinnati Masters.

The American rising star divulged that Sinner told him he “was saying sorry too much” and described the Italian as “a super nice guy.”

Michelsen holds an 0-2 record against Sinner, having faced the 23-year-old star twice during this year’s North American hard-court swing.

The 20-year-old pushed Sinner in a 4-6, 5-7 loss in the second round of the Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati in August, having progressed through the qualifying draw. Sinner went on to win the tournament.

Michelsen then fell to a one-sided 4-6, 0-6, 2-6 defeat to Sinner in the second round of the 2024 US Open, where the world No 1 went on to secure his second Grand Slam title.

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In an interview with ATPTour.com, Michelsen explained Sinner had told him he did not need to apologise for hitting a shot at him in Cincinnati.

“I have played Sinner twice now. I went close to him in Cincy, and at the US Open, he absolutely waxed me,” Michelsen said.

“But I remember we talked a lot in Cincinnati, because obviously he won that tournament. And I was actually there for doubles and I made the final.

“So I was seeing him every day in the locker room. And we chatted up. He actually told me I was saying sorry too much, because I tried to keg him. He knew I was going after him. And he’s like, ‘It’s a good play, don’t say sorry’.

“He is actually a super nice guy. Unfortunately, I am 0-2 against him. But I guess that’s okay because he is the number one player in the world.”

The American was also asked what he has learned on the ATP Tour in 2024.

“The tour is absolutely brutal. You lose every week. I haven’t won a tournament this year. I had a match point in the Newport final and I got aced on the match point. It was a good week,” Michelsen added.

“I feel like last year I was winning a lot because I went from 600 to 97 in the world. I won a lot of matches in Futures and Challengers. Even though you are not winning every week, you are still winning a ton of matches.

“And this year I think I might be 50/50. I might have the same number of wins and losses. It is definitely tough mentally, experiencing all this for the first time. And I think becoming a good loser, as lame as that sounds, you have got to become a good loser just because it is going to happen all the time.”

Michelsen ended the 2024 season at a career-high ranking of world No 41 after starting the year ranked 97th.

The 20-year-old will be the No 2 seed at this year’s Next Gen ATP Finals, which will be held from December 18-22.