LONDON: At the age of 23, Jannik Sinner has become the first Italian player to reach a 17th Grand Slam fourth round after beating Spain’s Pedro Martinez in straight sets.
The world No.1 was in dominant form from the onset as he surged to a 6-1, 6-3, 6-1, win over Martinez, who received medical treatment early on. Sinner has now won 16 out of 20 matches played at The All England Club during his career. Overall, he has won 77 Grand Slam matches.
“Every time you enter the second week of a Grand Slam, it is a very special occasion. Even more so at Wimbledon,” said Sinner.
“We (he and his team) will try to keep going, keep pushing. The first week couldn’t have gone better. Let’s see what’s coming.”
After cruising to a 5-0 lead, Sinner’s latest match on Centre Court was halted after Martinez requested a medical timeout for treatment on his right shoulder. When play resumed, the underdog clinched his first game, which prompted a huge roar. Although the celebration was short-lived, as the top seed went on to seal the opener.
It wasn’t until halfway through the second frame that Sinner got his first and only real test thanks to some inspired play coming from across the court. After breaking for a 4-2 lead, Martinez had a quartet of break point opportunities to draw level but failed to do so. Paving the way for Sinner to seal a two-set lead with the help of a forehand cross-court winner.
From that moment, it was a one-way encounter with Sinner storming to the finish line by winning six out of the last seven games contested.
“I’m very happy, but I think we all saw that he was struggling with the shoulder,” said Sinner.
“He couldn’t serve very well. Especially on this surface, when you can’t serve well, it is not easy to play. Huge respect for him to come out here and compete.
“It was not easy for him, but from my side, I tried to stay solid from the back of the court.”
There is some consolation for Martinez, who has ended two losing streaks at Wimbledon this year. Before playing in the first round, he had lost five Tour-level matches in a row and had lost his last seven matches played on the grass. Those streaks ended with wins over George Loffhagen and Mariano Novone. He is yet to beat a top-five player in his career after losing all eight of those meetings.
Meanwhile, Sinner eases into the last 16 at SW16, having lost just 16 games in three matches played. Earlier in the tournament, he defeated Luca Nardi in the first round and then Aleksandar Vukic. He is bidding to win his first title at SW19 this year.
He will play either Grigor Dimitrov or Sebastian Ofner next.
