Jannik Sinner: A Rising Star in Tennis
Jannik Sinner at the Monte Carlo Masters
Jannik Sinner achieved his first big target by reaching the semi-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters, but his hopes of claiming the top spot hang in the balance.
By reaching the last four in Monte Carlo, Sinner is assured of hanging onto the No 2 spot in the updated ATP Rankings, denying Carlos Alcaraz a chance to overhaul him.
Yet his hopes of eating into Novak Djokovic’s points total as he targets the world No 1 spot took a huge blow as he was beaten by Stefanos Tsistsipas in a thrilling contest in Monte Carlo.
The bigger concern for Sinner may be the knee injury he suffered in the third set of his match against Tsitsipas, as it clearly hampered his efforts to close out the match after he established a 4-1 lead against the Greek star.
Medics are now likely to assess the extent of Sinner’s injury, with his eagerness to play a full clay court season certain to be impacted by the medical advice he gets over the next few days.
Sinner came into this week at No 3 in the live ATP Rankings, after dipping below Alcaraz ahead of the tournament in Monte Carlo.
Alcaraz’s withdrawal due to an arm injury paved the way for Sinner to ensure he retained the No 2 ranking he secured for the first time in his career when he won the Miami Open last month.
While his new knee problem could affect his imminent plans, Sinner does have a chance of ending Novak Djokovic’s long reign as world No 1 and becoming the first Italian player to rise to the top of the ATP Rankings if he can get on the court for upcoming clay court tournaments.
Right now, Djokovic has a 1,285 rankings point advantage over Sinner, as he prepares to toast a remarkable 421 weeks as the world’s top player on Monday.
Despite his loss in Monte Carlo, winning the ATP 1000 events in Rome and Madrid could then give Sinner enough ranking points to overtake Djokovic, but there are a few caveats in this story.
READ MORE: Jannik Sinner suffers huge injury scare as he crashes to shock defeat in Monte Carlo
Sinner has opted against playing in the ATP 500 events in Barcelona next week, so that will see the 90 points he collected from playing in the tournament last year drop off his record.
Meanwhile, Djokovic has 180 points to defend from his run to the quarter-finals at the Rome Masters last year, before he will look to reclaim the 2,000 ranking points from his French Open win at Roland-Garros last June.
Sinner will have a big chance to make up ground in Madrid and Rome if he plays in those tournaments, with the French Open in Paris a likely location for the handover of power at the top of men’s tennis could take place.
Sinner was knocked out in the second round of the Grand Slam event last year, so he may well move up to provisional world No 1 in the live ATP rankings on day one of this year’s French Open.
Third Monte-Carlo final 🏆🏈@steftsitsipas recovers from 4-1 down in the third to defeat Sinner 6-4 3-6 6-4 🎠#RolexMonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/4G0SSCnXze
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 13, 2024
If he was to progress to the semi-finals or final of that event, his coronation as world No 1 would be assured even if he didn’t lift the title for the first time at Roland-Garros.
“I don’t like to talk about ranking. I just try to be happy on court and improve as a player. That’s the only thing I can control,” says Sinner as he addresses the tantalising prospect of becoming Italy’s first world No 1.
“Then the rest you cannot control the uncontrollable. For sure, my dream is to become No 1 in the world, and I will work as hard as possible.”
With Djokovic playing a reduced calendar in 2024, he has made it clear that the No 1 tanking is no longer a priority at this stage of his career.
“It’s a matter of weeks before Sinner becomes world No 1. This year the ranking is not my goal,” said Djokovic.
“To achieve that, you need to play a lot of events and I am not doing that now. As I have said many times, the Grand Slams are the target for me now and I want to try and peak for them.”
Djokovic’s long reign as the world No 1 is likely to end at some point this year, but a significant injury for Sinner could impact what comes next.