Italian Tennis Icon Calls Jannik Sinner One of the ‘Best Servers in History’ After Wimbledon Title Defense

Jannik Sinner smashed 128 aces throughout the recently concluded Wimbledon. Only once was his serve broken, by Miomir Kecmanovic, in the first round. Italian tennis icon Adriano Panatta called his compatriot one of the best servers in history.

Sinner defeated Alexander Zverev in four sets in the final of Wimbledon to become the 10th man in the Open Era to defend this title. En route to the final, Sinner dropped two sets, all in the first round. The 24-year-old breezed past seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic in the semifinals in straight sets.

Today his serve is at the level of the best servers in history. Not only because the statistics say so, but because he knows how to find the ace exactly when he needs it.

Adriano Panatta told Corriere della Sera

It was Sinner’s sixth title of the season after wins in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Monte Carlo, and Rome. He is the first man to win the first five Masters 1000s of the season as well as the second man after Djokovic to complete the Career Golden Masters.

After everything that happened in Paris, from that sudden block against the younger [Juan Manuel] Cerundolo, the extensive medical tests at the San Raffaele hospital, and all the doubts he surely had, this victory will allow him to erase at least a part of all that. A victory at Wimbledon always has something magical. And this time was no exception.

Adriano Panatta added

Last year at the All England Club, the World No.1 defeated Carlos Alcaraz, dashing his hope of a three-peat. The latest victory was also Sinner’s first Grand Slam win since last year’s Wimbledon, as Alcaraz denied him his second consecutive victory at the US Open. And in this year’s Australian Open and French Open, Sinner suffered defeats in the semifinals and the second round, respectively.

Novak Djokovic regrets giving advice to Jannik Sinner

Novak Djokovic had no idea that his advice would end up costing him Majors. Back in 2022, Jannik Sinner lost in the semifinals to Djokovic, despite a two sets to love up lead.

His coach, Darren Cahill, who joined his team that year, approached Djokovic for advice, and Nole shared what Sinner’s strengths and weaknesses are, that his serve needs improvement, that he needed to come to the net often as well as add variety to his game. Sinner lost again in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Wimbledon in straight sets at the hands of the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

But in 2025 and 2026 Wimbledon semifinals, the five-time Grand Slam champion emerged victorious in straight sets. Djokovic, during the Fanatics Fest in New York, joked that he shouldn’t have given advice to Sinner.

I gave him all the spill of everything I noticed on the court: his weaknesses, his strengths, things he has to work on, and then, the next three years, he beats me at Wimbledon every freaking year! So, maybe I made a mistake, I don’t know.

Sinner has improved his head-to-head record over Djokovic to 7-5. While it’s uncertain where Djokovic will play next, Sinner is next scheduled to participate at the Canadian Open, which he won in 2023 but skipped last year. If he wins titles in Montreal, Cincinnati, Shanghai, and Paris, he will become the first man in history to reach the Golden Masters milestone.

In Cincinnati last year, Sinner competed as the defending champion and reached the final only to hand the walkover to Carlos Alcaraz. Because of his wins in the first five Masters 1000s as well as last year’s Paris Masters, Sinner is on a 34-match winning streak in Masters 1000s.

Also read: Iga Swiatek Told She’s ‘Not Good Enough’ by Boris Becker After Wimbledon Upset: “Something Needs to Change Dramatically”