Jannik Sinner has already captured his maiden Grand Slam trophy this season but he is hungry for more.
The world No.3 enters into this week’s Indian Wells with a perfect win-loss record of 12-0 so far this year with five of those triumphs being over top 20 players. Besides his Australian success, he also won his 12th Tour title in Rotterdam where he dropped just one set in the entire tournament. He is one of only three ATP players to have won multiple titles so far in 2024. The other two are Sebastian Baez and Ugo Humbert.
Undoubtedly one of the most in-form players on the Tour, Sinner is pushing for more with the No.2 ranking spot in touching distance. He can overtake Carlos Alcaraz if he matches the Spaniard’s result in Indian Wells or better. Should they clash in the semi-finals, the winner will clinch the position. However, Daniil Medvedev could spoil both player’s plans if he wins the title and his rivals fail to reach the semi-finals. If that happens, the Russian would become No.2.
“I think tennis is a good sport because you can always set new goals,” atptour.com quoted Sinner as saying in his pre-tournament press conference. “It doesn’t really matter what kind of title you win. The next week is a good week and a good opportunity to do again something great.
“In my mind, I know that there are some important points for me to have a better ranking. This kind of motivation just keeps pushing me and of course, even more importantly, it’s to become a better tennis player throughout every week. So we will work. It doesn’t matter what the result is in the tournaments, we will keep working and hopefully I can get to 100 per cent in every single department.”
This year is Sinner’s fourth appearance in Indian Wells. So far, he has won seven out of nine matches played at the event, excluding walkovers. In 2023 he reached the last four before losing in straight sets to Alcaraz, who went on to claim the title.
Since that match, he has enjoyed a surge on the Tour with a series of high-profile victories. Including winning three out of his four most recent meetings against Novak Djokovic. Then he became the first Italian to triumph in Melbourne Park.
“It took not so much [to reset]. I had to do a couple of things in Rome, but while I was in Rome, I was already in the gym working,” he commented on the aftermath of his Australian Open win.
“I always think and believe that you live in moments. It was a positive and special moment. But then after you have to do it over again. You have to wake up in the morning and work again. And if you lose, you live this negative moment, but you don’t live your career with this.
“I have maybe a little bit different point of view of how to celebrate these kinds of things. Obviously, we had fun for one day, but then after everyone went home, and that’s how we deal a little bit with all this.”
Sinner is bidding to become the first male player from his country to win Indian Wells. Granted a bye in the first round, his opening match will be against Thanasi Kokkinakis.
