For the eighth time in history a world number 1 wins the first tournament held with this status on his shoulders. Jannik Sinner joins a rather exclusive clubeven narrower than that of the 29 who, until now, have been able to occupy the top position in terms of the ATP.
First on this list was Jimmy Connors, at the time when the world circuit was based on two calendars: on the one hand that of the Grand Prix, which was played from May to December, and on the other that of the WCT, which was played from January to May. Jimbo first became number 1 on July 29, 1974 and remained there for three years. However, he immediately had time to establish himself in Indianapolis, where the US Clay Court Championships were held and the loser in the final was Bjorn Borg by 5-7 6-4 6-3. It was Connors’ 11th title of the year and the 28th of his career, in a week that saw him lose the only set in the final.
The second was Bjorn Borg. But, be careful, a clarification needs to be made about the Swedish. He topped the ATP rankings for a week in 1977, but no sooner had he played than Connors had regained the lead. The Swedish Bear therefore had to wait until 1979 to play as number 1 in the ranking, when in the meantime the Grand Prix and WCT had become (for a few years) one and the same. Borg celebrated his second (and longest) passage as leader of the ranking in Monte Carlo, where he did not fail to win, dominating all his opponents, except the Argentine José Luis Clerc in the quarterfinals (to whom he conceded a set), and left only six games to Vitas Gerulaitiswho left this world too soon, in 1994.
THE KAISER’S LAW! Jannik Sinner beats Hurkacz with 2 tie-breaks and wins the first grass court title in Halle
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The third was Mats Wilander. And, of his three-Slam 1988 which culminated with the summit on September 12, the first tournament as number 1 came in Italy, in Palermo, an event that was held from 1935 until 2006, when the ATP took back the date (the Challenger born in 2009 is only an indirect successor to the Internazionali di Sicilia). Wilander, who was a great interpreter of the Swedish era, especially on clay, missed the Olympic event that year after the US Open (he wasn’t the only one: others played contemporary tournaments, given that there were three in the same period of time ), but returned to Sicily via wild card. He didn’t dominate, but what he did was enough to beat his compatriot Kent Carlsson.
The fourth was Stefan Edberg. Loved like few others for his attacking style of play, he rose to the top on 13 August 1990. That was the first year in which the ATP Tour, which replaced the Grand Prix and WCT in their various agreements and disagreements, was a symbol of true unit of the men’s circuit. Edberg, that week, played on Long Island, where there were many big names from Sampras to McEnroe to Ivanisevic. He beat two out of three: Mac and the then Yugoslavian who, after the dissolution, flew the Croatian flag. At the US Open, however, the Swede fell to Sasha Volkovin Soviet times, on one of the rare occasions in which the world leader was seen to immediately fall in a Slam.
The fifth was Pete Sampras. Pistol Pete, a shy character, Greek origins and a prowess in almost everything that could be called tennis, rose to the top for the first time on April 12, 1993. He had just beaten Brad Gilbert in the final in Tokyo with a triple 6-2. He immediately got back into the game and, in Hong Kong, seven days later, he also prevailed Jim Courier, although it took him 6-3 6-7(1) 7-6(2) to prevail. On and off, and after 11 periods as leader of the ATP rankings, he accumulated 286 weeks. A period that seemed impossible to beat, and instead he was beaten.
The sixth was Novak Djokovic. And, for the Serbian, the opportunity came in 2011, after he had won two Slams, 48 matches against one loss (with Roger Federer in the semi-final at Roland Garros). Once Nadal had been ousted on the Wimbledon lawns, Djokovic showed up in Montreal as the clear favourite. It was a tournament in which he often imposed the law after struggling in the first set, but in the final he had to give up a partial against one of the best Mardy Fish ever: the American snatched second before losing 6-2 3-6 6-4. His history also deserves a mention, as he talks about the struggle with anxiety on and off the pitch, for which he was the spokesperson in many ways.
The seventh, finally, was Andy Murray. And it is perhaps strange that Sinner happens to him today when the Dunblane native is perhaps forced to give up the last Wimbledon of his life. The Scotsman, after a practically infinite run-up, predicted a 2016 with nine tournaments won, including Wimbledon and the Olympics. It was in Paris-Bercy that he secured world leadership, continuing a streak of victories that started in Vienna and ended with the ATP Finals in London, which saw him defeat Djokovic in the final. An effort which, in the end, also paid dearly on a physical level, but which Murray regrets nothing about.
As you can see, Jannik Sinner joins a very special list. There are many names missing: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker they are among those of greatest importance in this story. Which can also be considered as a pure statistical number, but it must also be said that it is never easy to face the first tournament staged as world ranking leader. The Italian did everything right,
