Italy’s Jannik Sinner will try to end German Alexander Zverev's 14-match win streak on Monday at the 2021 US Open. Here are three things to know about the 20-year-old right-hander who almost didn’t pursue professional tennis.
1. He has risen faster than any other Italian man.
Three years ago, 17-year-old Jannik Sinner was ranked No. 882 in the world. But now the 20-year-old has already cracked the Top 20 and could soon find his way into the Top 10 after a few more wins in New York.
Year by year, Sinner has made blazingly fast progress. He made his Top 100 debut in 2019 behind a semifinal run in Antwerp. In 2020, Sinner won his first ATP title in Sofia and reached the French Open quarterfinals on debut at the age of 19, becoming the first player to make the quarterfinals on debut there since Rafael Nadal in 2005.
This year, Sinner won his first ATP 500 title at the US Open Series event in Washington, D.C., and became the youngest Italian ever to break the Top 15.
2. He thought about becoming a champion skier.
Sinner grew up in South Tyrol, a region in northeast Italy and southwest Austria known for its skiing, and he was a competitive skiing champion in 2008 and nearly again in 2012.
But ultimately, he started taking his tennis much more seriously. At the age of 14, he began training with longtime coach Riccardo Piatti, who once worked with Novak Djokovic, Milos Raonic and Ivan Ljubicic, among others.
“Skiing for me was not that long. You can just go for two minutes or something like that. I like playing more, and I decided tennis because I enjoyed it more,” Sinner said years ago.
Watch: Sinner vs. Monfils, Round 3 Highlights
3. He’s going for the biggest win of his career on Labor Day at the 2021 US Open.
Sinner is 0-7 against Top 5 opponents and has lost 16 of 17 sets against the best in the game. He’ll try to improve both marks against the fourth-seeded Zverev to start play in Arthur Ashe Stadium. Sinner and Matteo Berrettini are the first pair of Italian men to reach the fourth round of the US Open since the tournament began in 1881.
“It's going to be tough. Have to be ready, especially mentally. Trying to recover physically, as well. For me the first time here being in the second week, here in New York, so it's a great feeling obviously. You always try to do better and better. It's going to be tough,” Sinner said.
“Speaking about Sascha, he's in confidence. He's barely losing a match… It's going to be for sure a tough round.”
