LONDON: Jannik Sinner believes there are similarities between him and Novak Djokovic but his rival has the edge when it comes to confidence on the grass.
The world No.1 spoke about Djokovic after storming past Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic 6-1, 6-1, 6-3, in the second round at Wimbledon. Sinner has dropped only seven games in his first two matches played at the Grand Slam this year. In comparison, Djokovic only dropped five games in his latest match against Dan Evans but did drop a set in the opening round.
Both players will need to progress to the semi-finals if they are to face each other in the tournament. As to how they compare against each other, Sinner believes there are areas in their games that are similar.
“It’s difficult to say because I still believe we are both different players,” Sinner initially commented.
“We do have a couple of similarities in the way of how we hit the ball on the forehand and backhand. I feel like he has improved a lot the serve.
“Like today, he was serving incredibly well (against Evans).”
Sinner currently leads their head-to-head 5-4 and has won their four most recent meetings on the Tour.
“The way he moves, I feel like he is still much more confident than I am on grass, how he moves,” Sinner continued.
“But this is also the experience he has more than I have. He mixed up the game a little bit more. I may be a little bit of a faster hitter. But in the other way, I’m also quite consistent like he is.
“I believe that he gave me a lot of information so that I can make my game similar to his, but in my style.
“I always try to see from certain players what I can take and try to see if it works well.”
The next test for the top seed at Wimbledon will be a showdown against Spain’s Pedro Martinez, who is experiencing his best run at the tournament since 2021. Martinez has beaten George Loffhagen and Mariano Novone.
According to OptaAce, Sinner has conceded the fewest number of games en route to the third round as a top seed since Roger Federer in 2004.
