Jannik Sinner Cleans Rafael Nadal’s Eternal Plaque, Says It’s ‘the Least Roland Garros Can Do’ to Celebrate Him

Jannik Sinner is playing his third tournament of the season as he had to miss three months because of the doping scandal.

Jannik Sinner Cleans Rafael Nadal’s Eternal Plaque, Says It’s ‘the Least Roland Garros Can Do’ to Celebrate Him

Jannik Sinner, Rafael Nadal (Image via X/GamebredSports, Raquete na Mao)

Jannik Sinner has now won 27 of his last 28 matches. On May 26th, he kick-started his Roland Garros campaign in emphatic fashion. Against Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech, Sinner clinched five consecutive games after being down 2-5 in the third set, eventually winning the match with a 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 scoreline.

Later during the on-court interview, he walked with former player Alex Corretja to the area on Chatrier where Rafael Nadal‘s footprint was etched.

During the retirement ceremony on Sunday (May 25th), Nadal got very emotional when the plaque of his footprint was unveiled. While Corretja was asking Sinner about Nadal, the young Italian bent down, and cleaned the mud off the plaque before paying a heartfelt tribute to the man with 14 French Open titles.

What can I say? The player we all know, but mostly the person he was and still is. He never changed with any success. He has a great family and now it’s a new chapter for him. But I think this [plaque] is the least the court can do, you know, to put this footprint here…14 times winning this trophy here. So I think we can all be very very lucky to share this moment with him.

Sinner has met Nadal thrice on the tour- all three on clay which the 23-year-old ended up losing. Twice on Philippe-Chatrier in the 2020 and 2021 French Open.

He is a role model to all of us. The next generation [can learn from] how he behaved on court, how he treats people, how he’s kind to every ball girl and ball boy. It’s just amazing.

Jannik Sinner added

Nadal hung up his racket at the 2024 Davis Cup in Malaga after Spain’s defeat to the Netherlands. The 22-time Grand Slam was defeated in the first round of his last French Open (in 2024) by Alexander Zverev. His 14th Roland Garros title came in 2022, which also ended up being his last Grand Slam trophy.

Andre Agassi explains what makes Jannik Sinner’s game unbearable for his opponents

Jannik Sinner has extended his Grand Slam winning streak to 15 matches. It was his third victory over Arthur Rinderknech in their four matches. After his win, tennis great Andre Agassi lauded the three-time Grand Slam champion’s ball-striking abilities. He thinks Sinner’s controlled aggression during matches makes him “unbearable” for his opponents.

Jannik Sinner (3)
Jannik Sinner (Image via X/GamebredSports)

What Sinner does on a tennis court is some of the most epic ball striking I think the game has ever seen. He can absolutely bludgeon the ball and he is only hitting it at 85%.

Andre Agassi told TNT Sports

The 23-year-old will next be facing another home favorite. It’s Richard Gasquet who has announced that he will retire after his home tournament.

Sinner has faced the 38-year-old thrice, winning all the matches, including the second round of last year’s Roland Garros. His best performance in the clay-court Major came in 2024 when he reached the semifinal, losing the match to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz.

The French Open is Sinner’s third tournament of the season as he was forced to stay on the sidelines for three months because of the doping scandal. In the two tournaments, Sinner reached the finals.

He clinched the win at the Australian Open by beating Alexander Zverev. In his comeback tournament, the Italian Open, Sinner’s 26-match winning streak was ended in the final by Alcaraz, who he is projected to meet in the championship match of the French Open.

Also read: Carlos Alcaraz Moved by the Emotional Roland Garros Tribute to ‘Idol’ Rafael Nadal