Winner, winner, Jannik Sinner
At first glance, Jannik Sinner does not look like the tennis star he is. He's shy, he's quiet, he doesn't show many emotions, but he's respectful and graceful. However, all these take a step back once he enters the tennis court and becomes an unexpected protagonist.
Born in San Candido in Italy, he has always indulged in sports. At 13, he faced a pivotal decision: football, skiing, or the uncharted territory of becoming a tennis player. He chose the last one, and even though he was at the cusp of teenage life at the time of his decision, it now appears to be a crowning resolution, as nine years later, he is now a grand slam champion.
The rise of Jannik Sinner is picture perfect. He broke through the rankings at unprecedented pace. However, his struggles to make it deep into the second round of slams is what kept him out of the limelight. Everyone knows that no matter how good you are, it's the slams that carry the most weight. While Sinner fought to piece his game together, the shadow loomed larger with the ascent of Carlos Alcaraz, two years his junior, who became the US Open champion at just 19. Suddenly, Sinner had to take the back seat. You cannot help but think if that affected him to some degree—to watch Alcaraz win two grand slams in two years while he had to patiently wait for his.
Patience is a virtue that Sinner does possess, and eventually that paid off. He won in Beijing in 2023 and finished as runners up in the ATP World Tour Finals, faltering to Novak Djokovic. A week later, he grasped his revenge when he beat Djokovic and then single-handedly led Italy to a Davis Cup title to finish the year. The manner in which he played the Davis Cup and the Tour Finals showcased his composure and quality, enabling him to dispatch his opponents with ease and grace.
When the Australian Open draws came out, Sinner landed on the same end as Djokovic, a man who has lifted the title a record 10 times, and if they were to face, they would do so only in the semi-finals. The scary part? Djokovic has never lost after the quarters and boasts a perfect 20-0 record on Rod Laver Arena.
With a week and a half of high-level matches, both players made their way towards their destiny—a semi-final showdown. Sinner dropped zero sets en route. However, this was the toughest test in tennis, and he was prepared to take it. If you want the crown, you must beat the king.
And he took it so exceptionally well. In the last 21 years, Djokovic has never played a grand slam match where he did not have a break point. On that day, Sinner was just that brilliant. Even when he lost the third set and allowed a match point to slip away, his most noticeable reaction was to push his water bottle out of the way. He then kept his head down and did not falter to common habits. He played every shot with acute precision and weight and eventually earned a place in his first-ever grand slam final. While arguments will be made that Djokovic was dealing with illness, Sinner has earned his deserved laurels.
Waiting for him at the final was Daniil Medvedev, a player with one slam to his name but seasoned in his game. Medvedev rushed to a two-set lead, but his old demons came back haunting. Just two years ago, on the very same court, Medvedev lost a two-set lead and succumbed to defeat in the hands of Rafael Nadal. However, this time, there was some consolation for Medvedev—he had spent the most hours on the court and had played back-to-back five sets while Sinner spent the least amount of time playing. Yet, that should not take anything away from Sinner either: his composure even at the lowest and his ability to keep gritting at points is what made Medvedev tremble.
As the clock hit the three-hours-and-40-minutes mark, the moment arrived. All Sinner had to do was hold serve to be crowned champion. With the exact composure and patience, he played the whole tournament; he played each point with full strength and confidence. Even at 30-30, he remained true to himself, and when the championship point came, he grasped it.
It took him a second to register that he needed to fall to ground to encapsulate the moment, such is Sinner's poise even in victories. Even in his victory there is profound humbleness. He thanks his team and then proceeds to wish that everyone can have parents like his, people who backed him to choose his sport freely and gave their blessings in every step of his journey. Even as he stood on the podium, lifting a trophy many players retired before even coming close to it, his smile reflected his innocence and wholesomeness. Nothing too loud, nothing too subdued—just a young boy gleefully realising his lifelong dream of becoming a Grand Slam champion.
Raiyan Binte Rafiq is a sports columnist for The Daily Star. She is currently pursuing an LLM, while freelancing for INDIVISA. She also oversees recruitment at Next Level Sports Management based in Bangladesh.
Views expressed in this article are the author's own.
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