Jannik Sinner stirs controversy as he skips meeting with President Sergio Mattarella to celebrate success of Italian tennis players after Australian Open win
Jannik Sinner refused the offer to meet President Sergio Mattarella after winning his third Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.
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Sergio Mattarella, Jannik Sinner (Images via Wikipedia, X)
Jannik Sinner and several other Italian tennis players were scheduled to meet at Quirinale, the official residence of President Sergio Mattarella. Sinner, however, decided to skip the event, after making Italy proud with his third Grand Slam win at the Australian Open.
Sinner breezed past Alexander Zverev in straight sets in the final to defend his title. Following the win, he withdrew from the Rotterdam Open, the ATP 500 tournament, which he had won last year.
As per the leading Italian publication, La Gazzetta dello Sport, the 23-year-old chose to refuse the invitation to the Quirinale because he wants to prioritize getting enough rest. This stirred controversy in Italy as although some backed him for choosing his health, others questioned his decision.
Following an impressive 2024 season that saw Sinner become a two-time Grand Slam champion and become an ATP Finals champion for the first time, Sinner joined his compatriots in Malaga to help Italy win the Davis Cup for the second time on the trot.
The three-time Grand Slam champion then went to Dubai to train and had less than a week off. He skipped the ATP events in the lead-up to the Australian Open and chose to play two exhibition events Down Under.
Although Sinner had a successful campaign at the Melbourne Slam, he suffered from some illness during his fourth-round clash with Denmark’s Holger Rune. He took a controversial 11-minute medical timeout and was seen shaking at one point during the match. In an interview, Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill said the youngster ‘looked white as a sheet‘ when he turned up to play the match against Rune.
Pat Cash says Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are ahead of every youngster
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have won a combined seven Grand Slam titles. Except for the Australian Open, the Spaniard has lifted the other three Majors and emerged as a winner twice at Wimbledon. Sinner, on the other hand, has bagged two trophies at the Australian Open and one at the US Open.
1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash compared the two youngsters to that of the Big 4 (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray) and explained why they are ahead of everybody else at present. Cash is also expecting other youngsters to challenge Sinner and Alcaraz in the near future.
Sinner and Alcaraz are so far ahead of everybody else. Until other young guys come through, it is a two-horse race. We saw that for a while with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, then [came] Andy Murray, Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka. Things can change really quickly, but as of now, it’s a one-horse or two-horse race for the Grand Slams.
Pat Cash said on BBC Radio 5 Live
Sinner’s absence from the Rotterdam Open will make Alcaraz the first seed in the tournament. The 21-year-old, who was defeated in four sets by Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, is set to make his debut in Rotterdam.
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Gouri Das
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