Jannik Sinner showed off for the first time in a Grand Slam tournament in 2020 at Roland Garroswhen in an edition moved to autumn due to Covid he reached the quarter-finals.
He thought about interrupting his journey Rafael Nadal, who then won – once again – the tournament dominating everything and everyone. After that match, the South Tyrolean had two more opportunities to try to beat the Spaniard, again on clay: Nadal defeated him both in Rome and Paris in 2021.
Whereas Sinner beat Novak Djokovic three times – the last garlic Australian Open – the next personal satisfaction could be to overtake the Majorcan. The 37-year-old is trying to find the continuity that he has been missing for some time now, but in Madrid he avenged the defeat suffered in Barcelona last week against Alex de Minaur.
Jannik Sinner’s beautiful words on Rafael Nadal: “He gave so much to tennis”
In the press conference, Sinner spoke about Nadal, expressing a beautiful thought. “Rafa has given a lot to our sport. A different mentality, how to approach training and matches, how to emerge from difficult situations.
It always makes me very happy to see him play. Things are different for him now than in the past. He is a father and is accompanied by his family,” said the Italian. “I wish him all the best and hope that his physical self continues to assist him as long as possible.
I’m sure he will do whatever it takes. You can see that the intensity with which he trains and plays is still high. Beating him on clay is one of the most complicated challenges in our sport.
For me he was a source of inspiration for his fighting spirit, he never complained about anything and he is truly special.”
