Written by Richard Pagliaro | @Itenisi_Manje | Thursday, October 10, 2024
Photo credit: Tim Clayton/Corbis/Getty
World No. 1 Jannik Sinner humbly Rafael Nadal more than a famous champion.
Sinner sees Nadal, who has announced his retirement at the age of 38 after next month’s Davis Cup Final 8, as a humble hero, a tennis teacher, mentor to many young players and a role model and gift that keeps on giving to the game.
More: Rafael Nadal Announces Retirement From Tennis
“Well, it’s tough news, I think, for the whole tennis world, not just the tennis world,” Sinner told reporters in Shanghai after his 6-1, 6-4 Rolex Shanghai Masters victory. Daniel Medvedev today. “All I can say is, I’ve been lucky enough to know him and, like, you know, he’s a brilliant person, and he’s an incredible person.
“Yeah, the player, we all saw how good he was as a player, and, you know, the lessons he taught us, you know, the younger players, how to behave on the field, how to handle situations on the court, difficult situations.
“Yes, he gave us all a lot of emotions when we saw him play. And staying humble, you know, at the same time, not changing successfully, choosing the right people around him, having a big family. .”
In October 2020, Nadal came back from a break in the opening set to stop Sinner 7-6 (4), 6-4, 6-1 in the Roland Garros quarterfinals that ended at midnight in Paris. Since then, the pair have practiced frequently with Sinner serving as Nadal’s partner in Perth ahead of the 2021 Australian Open.
The king of clay predicted that young Soni would grow up to be a Grand Slams champion and world number 1 and that prediction proved to be a prophecy.
Sinner said that Nadal and other Big 3 champions Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have set a standard that cannot be reached.
“I mean, what they’ve done over the years has been amazing,” Sinner said of the Big 3. “There’s not a lot to say about the pressure, the pressure will always be there. But, you know, I’m talking about my side, I’m thinking about myself, what I have to do on the field, what I have to improve on, and hopefully it’ll make him better as a player, you know, and he’ll be a consistent player for years and years and years…
“So it’s amazing what they’ve achieved, what they’ve done. There’s a lot of things we can take from them. We can’t compare us to them, you know, that’s impossible, especially in this moment now. I think we all were lucky to see the Big 3, you know, play tennis.
“And I consider myself very fortunate to know them and as a person and, you know, to learn from them, and, yes, I think that’s it.”
