Jannik Sinner: an interview with the tennis world’s new star
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The last time an Italian man won a Grand Slam tennis tournament, ABBA were in the charts, The Omen was in cinemas and Jimmy Carter was on the campaign trail. That 48-year barren period came to an end in January when Jannik Sinner lifted the Australian Open trophy, leaving vanquished finalist Daniil Medvedev in his wake. What was most impressive was the manner in which the 22-year-old from South Tyrol did it: not just the thundercrack topspin forehands and backhands that are his trademark, but the cool mental fortitude and unwavering confidence that underpinned them. Despite having trailed in the final by two sets to love, Sinner never looked like a man with defeat on his mind.
“Being calm is, for me as a player, really important, because you can see things a little bit better and a little bit faster,” he tells me when we meet in the picturesque and tranquil surroundings of the Monte-Carlo Country Club. Standing 6ft 2in, he is more physically imposing in person than on screen, but his tangle of curly red hair is just as vibrant. “If you get frustrated, it’s like when you drive a car fast and you don’t see well what’s outside.”
He orders a macchiato “but decaf please”. Nothing about Sinner is caffeinated, his amiably laidback presence in person mirroring his composure on court. He is a resident of Monaco, traditionally a place of playboys and boy racers, but is very clearly not of their ilk. He is a lover of Formula One racing but has no garage in Monaco and only keeps one car: an Audi. He has a longtime girlfriend, model and influencer Maria Braccini, but keeps his personal life resolutely out of the limelight.
Having patiently endured a three-hour photo shoot, he now wears a slate-grey rain mac that matches the sky outside, but his disposition could not be sunnier. He has good reason to be cheerful. When we meet, he has just won the Rotterdam Open after having won the Australian Open. Both wins have taken his career earnings on the tour to nearly $20m, not counting his external sponsorship deals – Nike recently gave him a 10-year $158mn contract. At the time of writing, his ranking is number two. His 19-match unbeaten streak only came to an end last month when he was beaten by his friend and arch-rival Carlos Alcaraz at Indian Wells in California; after that, he took the title at the Miami Open.
Together, the pair are the brightest stars in the current firmament. With the Big Four gradually exiting the picture (Novak Djokovic, whom Sinner beat in the semi-finals in Australia, is still world number one, but Roger Federer has retired and Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray have both said they are likely to bow out this year), tennis has been looking for new figureheads. Many believe Sinner has the game to be one the sport’s next great leaders – Boris Becker for one. The three-time Wimbledon champion has known Sinner for several years. “Maybe it’s something to do with the red hair and the very white skin but, you know… we feel for each other,” he says over the phone.
“I think the sky’s the limit,” Becker continues of Sinner’s potential. “He and Carlos Alcaraz look like they’re better than the rest for various reasons. Who’s going to win five majors? Who knows – so many things can happen on the way to heaven. But I don’t see any reason for Jannik to stop winning.”
Sinner was born in Innichen in South Tyrol, five miles from the border with Austria. His father was a cook, his mother a waitress, and he has an older brother, Mark. “I come from a really normal family,” he says. His first language is German. In his post-win speech in Melbourne, he thanked the usual roll-call of his training team, staff and sponsors, but paid particular heartfelt tribute to his parents, saying he wished all children “could have parents like mine”.
“I went to a couple of tournaments when I was younger – 16 or 17 – and I lost,” he explains. “And afterwards I called my parents and I wanted to explain what happened. And they said, ‘Yeah, OK, but we have to talk later because we have to work now, OK?’” The heads of helicopter parents everywhere may spin at such an offhand reaction to defeat, but for the young Sinner it was just what he needed to hear. “At that point, I understood that obviously results matter, but what really matters is trying to work hard, waking up and going to work and doing it with a smile. My parents always came home and smiled. So that’s what they gave me: a really positive mindset with a really good work ethic.”
The Sinners’ less obsessive approach is reflected in Jannik’s tennis origin story. Rather than putting all his balls in one basket, he was encouraged to practise several sports, excelling at football and skiing, particularly the latter, and winning an Italian giant slalom championship at the age of eight. “I was really good at skiing, not that good at tennis,” he admits. But as he approached his teens there came a change of direction.
“When I was 12 or 13, I was in a race, and it was the first downhill race. You go there and you have to jump 30 or 40 metres, and when you’re a kid it’s scary – for me it was. So I said: maybe I am too scared to go on skiing. I chose to play tennis because, for me, it’s a healthy competition.” And then a flash of the ruthless competitor. “You don’t have contact with your opponent, but you can still hurt him.”
Djokovic, whose game style is often compared to Sinner’s, was also a promising skier in his youth, and one of the traits the players share is an impeccable balance in their lateral movement. He admits that skiing maybe laid the foundation for this, “but what helped me more was the mental part. When you ski and you make one mistake, you cannot win the race. If you fall, you’re out of competition.”
The relentless grind of the tennis tour is legendary. The season is punishingly long, the off-season pitifully short, often amounting to only a few weeks in December. Last Christmas, Sinner was able to steal away for a skiing trip to Austria – but only for two days. Nevertheless, he speaks of the time in almost hallowed terms. “These days are really important for me because it gives me a feeling of when I was young. I go to the slopes, ski a little bit, have fun with my friends. In my mind, it’s like being back in the old days, and that’s really, really good for me – these are maybe the most special days that I can have.”
Nowadays, Sinner isn’t trying to set any downhill records – the risk of injury too great. Tennis players’ bodies are precious. “I am more in the gym than the tennis court right now,” he admits. During the 2000s and 2010s, players acquired great muscle mass but also more injuries. More recently, they have become leaner again, many of them long and lithe like Sinner. “Every body is different,” he points out. “Me, for example, I have to be strong and stable. And I think that’s one of the reasons why I made this extra step [of winning a Grand Slam], because physically I’ve grown. When I was 20, I still didn’t have the body of a 20-year-old – and you have to accept that…”
“You need to be stronger, but it’s endurance strength,” adds Becker. “Tennis is not a 100m race, I’d say it’s an 800m to 1,500m race, sometimes even longer. And you have to be strong enough to come back the next day, and the next day…” He has been impressed by Sinner’s mentality and work ethic. “Most teenagers or twentysomethings have a lot of flies in their head. First it’s the girlfriend, then it’s the car, then – you name it. But Jannik was always very determined with this quiet confidence of, ‘I know what I have to do. I have one goal and one goal only and that is to become the best tennis player that Jannik Sinner can be.’”
Tennis thrives on rivalries, and the Sinner-Alcaraz one is arguably the hottest show in tennis, inspiring the highly tweetable portmanteau “Sincaraz”. Alcaraz is two years younger, but the two have already met eight times, winning four matches apiece. Even Sinner is a fan.
“It’s really nice to see when someone young achieves something great. I think that’s what the sport needs. We have a really good relationship off the court and on the court. We give everything we have and we also try to entertain the crowd – maybe him more, because he has spectacular shotmaking. I really enjoy watching him play.”
Sinner is already a superstar in Italy, and his renown is rapidly spreading. But he wears it lightly. “If I go to the store and people ask for pictures, I accept it,” he says. “It’s nice, especially when someone young comes up to me, because I also was young and sometimes too shy to ask for a picture.”
“Jannik is simply incredible,” says Sabato de Sarno, creative director of Gucci, which signed Sinner as a brand ambassador in 2022, having already heeded his potential (he made a stir at last year’s Wimbledon sporting a special Gucci duffel bag, which required the strict All England Club’s approval). “He is a champion not only for his talent but also for the attitude, discipline and kindness he shows every day. Watching him on the court in the past few months, match after match, has been truly inspiring. As a creative, I am proud that he represents me and my fashion.”
And what of enjoying the spoils? Tennis celebrations these days can be impossibly ascetic – gone are the days of players partying hard after a big win. Djokovic famously indulged after his near-six hour 2012 Australian Open final victory by treating himself to a single square of chocolate. There are rumours that Sinner marked Italy’s 2023 Davis Cup win over Australia with something even more restrained. Did he really celebrate by eating an apple?
“No,” he laughs. “A hamburger. I have this thing that when we have a good week we always eat a hamburger.” He has now racked up tournament wins in numerous world cities. So, which has the best burgers? “Honestly, the one in Australia was really good. In America there are some good places too – in Cincinnati, Firebirds has a really good hamburger.” Hold on, I point out, he hasn’t yet won the Cincinnati Open. Busted. The mask has finally slipped, the dark side of Sinner revealed. “Yeah, but it’s my birthday during Cincinnati,” he smiles.
In the next few months, Sinner will be hoping to taste the burgers of Paris and Wimbledon. His appetite for success is only growing. “For sure there is now more motivation. I’m in a different position than I was one year ago, because in my mind I know that I can do certain things. I always believed, but it is different when you know that you can do it.” His mouth widens into a broad grin. “It’s exciting.”
Grooming, Alexander Soltermann at Home. Digital operator, Martin Varret at Imagin. Stylist’s assistant, Lucía Bustillo. Production, Emma Reeve. Special thanks to the Monte-Carlo Country Club
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