Darren Cahill says Jannik Sinner performed beyond “expectations” despite finishing as runners-up at the Italian Open
Jannik Sinner's 12-match winning streak this season came to an end after losing to Carlos Alcaraz in three sets at the Italian Open final.
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Darren Cahill and Jannik Sinner (via BBC)
Jannik Sinner’s 26-match winning streak came to an end on Sunday (May 18) after losing to Carlos Alcaraz at the Italian Open final. Despite the loss, it was a positive result for the World No.1 on his return to the tour. His coach Darren Cahill revealed that the Italian superseded their expectations at the tournament.
Before Sinner returned from his three-month suspension, it was announced that he would compete in five consecutive weeks to get to his best level. He would begin at the Italian Open, then the Hamburg Open, before the French Open. However, after reaching the semi-finals in Rome, he immediately withdrew from Hamburg.
The Australian Open champion entered the Rome Masters with no competitive match for over three months, but he stunned the tennis world by adapting fast to the high-level tennis. His first convincing result was after beating the in-form Francisco Cerundolo in straight sets to reach the quarter-finals.
He then breezed past Casper Ruud 6-0, 6-1 to reach the semifinals. Against Tommy Paul, he was outplayed in the first set and was down 1-6, but he rallied back into the match and defeated the American 1-6, 6-0, 6-3 to seal his place in the final against Alcaraz. The 23-year-old began the final strongly despite Alcaraz’s pressure.
He was aiming to become the first male Italian champion in Rome since Adriano Panatta in 1976. But he failed to do so, as Alcaraz showed why he had reached three consecutive finals on clay. Sinner lost 6(5)-7, 1-6 to Alcaraz after an hour and forty-four minutes. His coach Darren Cahill revealed that they were expecting Sinner to play two or three matches in Rome.
Our expectations here in Rome were to play two or three games because we didn’t know how Jannik’s body would react to a series of games after such a long time without official matches. One of the big challenges we had to face as his return got closer and closer was to replicate situations in training that he then finds in matches.
Darren Cahill said via Sky Sports
Sinner will hope to win his fifth Masters 1000 title later this season, but Alcaraz claimed the seventh of his career. The Spaniard extended his lead over Sinner to 7-4 in their head-to-head record on tour. Alcaraz’s victory was his 30th of the season, the highest by any player this season, and he also claimed his 3rd title of the year.
Jannik Sinner aims to do better at the French Open after Rome impressive run
Jannik Sinner will not forget his run at the Rome Masters in a hurry, as he had never gone past the quarter-finals of the tournament before this year. The World No.1 will now have to turn his attention to the French Open, which begins on May 25. He revealed after the final loss against Carlos Alcaraz that there are certain aspects of his game he aims to improve on.
It’s something very, very special playing here in Italy, in Rome. They pick me up like a small child. The support was amazing. For sure there are some things we saw today that we have to improve if we want to do well in Paris. I am closer than expected in a way of everything. But in the other way, it was good. It was a great week for me. Some matches incredibly well, some matches could be better. But this is tennis. It’s a lot of ups and downs.
Jannik Sinner said
Sinner reached the semifinals of the French Open last year before losing to Alcaraz in a five-set thriller match. It was the World No.1’s best run at the tournament. He hopes to do better this year after his impressive performance at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome.
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