By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Sunday, January 28, 2024
Teetering on the ledge of loss down two sets to Daniil Medvedev in the Australian Open final, Jannik Sinner wasn’t tripping out over his predicament.
Dancing in a major stress storm was right where he always hoped to be.
The 22-year-old Sinner roared back from a two-set deficit defeating Medvedev 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 to capture his maiden major championship in a pulsating AO comeback.
The fourth-seeded Sinner is the first Italian singles player to win the Australian Open. He is the first Italian man in 48 years to capture a major championship following in the footsteps of legendary Adriano Panatta, the 1976 Roland Garros champion.
Three primary keys to Sinner’s comeback conquest:
*Faced with a huge hole in his maiden major final, Sinner did not press the panic button. He was fueled by the fact Medvedev had spent nearly six hours longer on court en route to the final and knew the 6’6″ Russian’s tank would eventually empty.
*In a positional adjustment, Sinner backed up a bit further behind the baseline to return Medvedev’s first serve and put more returns back in play as the three-time finalist began to tire.
*Poise under pressure. Sinner scored his 10th victory in his last 11 matches vs. Top 5 opponents not simply because he’s a pristine, powerful ball striker, but because he’s a much more polished match player know, who made shrewd shot selections and player powerful, but high percentage tennis in the decider.
In his post-match presser, Sinner twice quoted Billie Jean King’s famed mantra “pressure is a privilege,” which is also the title of her book.
“There is always pressure, but the pressure is something good. You have to take it in a good way. It’s a privilege, no?” Sinner said. “Because there are not so many players who have this kind of pressure, but in the other way, when you have pressure, it’s always, okay, he believes that I can really do it.”
“So yes, I like to dance in the pressure storm. I don’t know how to tell. Like me personally, I like it, because that’s where most of the time I bring out my best tennis. I’m also quite relaxed in this occasion, because I always try to enjoy on the court.
“So I think pressure is a privilege, to be honest.”
Remaining calm and committed to finishing the job amid the chaotic storm is a quality Sinner learned from his parents.
Sinner combines superstar skill with a working-class ethos that comes from his parents. His father,…
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