Sinner, the announcement circulated in the last few hours has sown panic. It’s official: “He won’t go to the Olympics.”
Three years ago, more or less these days, while Matteo Berrettini was preparing to play his first Slam final, Jannik Sinner divided the Italian public. The South Tyrolean tennis player had given up on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the Bel Paese, to put it kindly, had not taken it so well. The criticism was heavy and it took quite some time for the native of San Candido to receive forgiveness from the fans of the country.
The rest is history and fortunately we know that, with all the successes collected over time, the boy from the Dolomites has made a great recovery. “I haven’t played my best tennis during the last few tournaments and I need to focus on my growth“, he said at the time, justifying that decision taken not at all lightly.
At Paris Olympics however, he has been thinking about it for a long time, so much so that at the beginning of the season he immediately made it clear that winning a medal would be one of the goals to be scored in 2024. Having won the Slam and the top of the rankings, all that remains is to grab some nice gold. Now that the Games are approaching, however, very dark shadows are gathering over the future of the Italian champion and his actual participation in the competition.
Sinner, the announcement gives shivers: “He won’t go to the Olympics”
Luca Bottazzi, former player and university professor, is convinced of this, and with the interview with Mowmag he put a big flea in the ear of all Italians.
“The Olympic tournament is very complicated to predict – these are his words – because in the middle of the tennis calendar once every four years. We play again on clay in 2 on 3: we play again on clay after the grass and then finish in America playing on hard court. Sinner has to remain number 1, so I’m almost sure he won’t go to the Olympics. If he is thrown on grass to maintain number 1, going to the Olympics could also ruin his season. Let’s not forget that these guys get hurt, they are Formula One cars pushed to the limit and therefore doing an extra race outside of your expectations is inadvisable.”
“An Olympic medal is obviously important, but it is for a player who already has a solid career behind him and who has won many Slams. They will be important and fundamental later but not now.” The special observer therefore automatically becomes, according to Bottazzi, Lorenzo Musetti: “It is precisely the tournament suitable for him – he observed – in which he can make the first round or go to medal: let’s not forget that Musetti is genius and reckless, which is why it is the perfect tournament for him“. Yet, something tells us that Sinner is unlikely to pass such a disappointment on his very passionate audience.
This content was modified 19 June 2024 08:26
