‘Sacrificing a lot’ – Jannik Sinner lifts lid on tough road from French Open agony to Wimbledon glory
Jannik Sinner says he made a lot of “sacrifices” between his French Open agony and his Wimbledon glory.
The Italian was the heavy favourite to lift his first Roland Garros crown after winning all five of this season’s Masters 1000 titles, coupled with the absence of injured defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
But the 24-year-old suffered a physical collapse during scoring temperatures at the clay Grand Slam and eventually lost in five sets to Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round, which was a surprise in online sports betting odds for tennis at the time.
The 6ft 3in player chose not to play any grass court events in the lead-up to Wimbledon, with the world No 1 also doing a number of medical checks to get to the bottom of his physical struggles.
Sinner kept them at bay at this year’s Wimbledon as he defended his title after beating Alexander Zverev in four sets. Following his victory, which was his fifth major, the right-hander gave some insight into his pre-tournament preparation in his post-match press conference.
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Q: You seemed quite emotional after the match point. How do you compare the emotions after this fifth Grand Slam title compared to the four first titles?
Sinner told reporters, “I think every Grand Slam is different, you know. Different story, different environment, different feelings before the tournament.
“For me this one means a lot because was a tough one after Paris again. Last year was also tough. But coming here, I tried to put myself in the best possible position to be as competitive as possible.
“Yeah, we put in a lot of workdays in Monaco, very, very long. Definitely sacrificing a lot of my time and everything to be in this position. Having this achievement, it means a lot to me. Yeah, it was an amazing day today.”
The Italian added, “I have improved throughout the whole tournament. If you see the performance from the first two, three matches, then how I ended the tournament, it has been always growing. That’s exactly what I needed. I was looking for this improvement, a player improvement, from my side. We made it happen.
“Of course, mentally you need to make the switch, as well, to be able to do so. But I’m very happy how I handled the situation, especially this year. Yeah, now it’s time to enjoy.”
WHAT ELSE? Everything Alexander Zverev said after losing the Wimbledon final to Jannik Sinner
