Jannik Sinner Reveals if He Wants His Fans to Dress up as ‘Foxes’ Instead of ‘Carrots’

Jannik Sinner is bidding to win his first title in the French capital, where his best performance came last year.

Jannik Sinner Reveals if He Wants His Fans to Dress up as ‘Foxes’ Instead of ‘Carrots’

Jannik Sinner with the Carota Boys (Image via X/We Are Tennis France)

Instead of the regular banana, Jannik Sinner munched on a whole carrot during a changeover at the Vienna Open back in 2019. This, along with his curly red hair, led to the formation of the famous Sinner fan club- The Carota Boys.

According to Sinner, he didn’t get the chance to eat before that match at the 2019 Vienna Open, so he told his coach to bring something to eat, and his coach gave him the carrot. Sinner’s logo, however, is a fox. Nike came up with the idea of having a fox-shaped logo on his outfit, which he debuted last year during the ATP Finals (ended up winning).

Sinner is in Paris, bidding to win his first French Open title. After moving past Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech, Sinner, with a scoreline of 6-3, 6-0, 6-4, defeated home favorite Richard Gasquet, who then hung up his racket to end a career spanned over two decades.

Sinner’s fans, however, have not yet moved on from the carrot era, for they still flock to the stadiums wearing bright orange costumes to cheer for the three-time Grand Slam champion. At the press conference after his win over Gasquet, Sinner was asked if he wanted his fans to dress up as foxes rather than carrots.

It’s still orange though [the fox logo]. Whatever. It’s just fans. It’s good to have them. Everyone is different. I think this carrot thing started back in the days in Vienna. My logo came out a bit later, which is the fox logo. Maybe carrots are a bit easier to find I guess? It’s nice. On court, I don’t look so much around. I try to stay focused. I’m not counting how many fans I have there. I think it’s nice.

Jannik Sinner said

Jannik Sinner reveals if he thinks the French crowd was disrespectful toward him

Jannik Sinner has played two matches so far at the Roland Garros, both against Frenchmen. Before the tournament, many predicted that because of the doping scandal, Sinner would be facing boos and jeers from the crowd, especially when he would be up against the home favorites. The Italian, however, doesn’t think the crowd was disrespectful toward him.

Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner (Image via X/GamebredSports)

I played two matches, both against French players, and they have been very, very respectful. When you play here against a French player, the atmosphere is a bit different. It’s the same when I play in Italy. There are people who shout a bit, but it’s normal. I feel it’s more off the central court, or on Suzanne Lenglen, where it’s a bit more chaotic.

Jannik Sinner said at the press conference

Sinner will now be up against Czech ace Jiri Lehecka, who knocked out Jordan Thompson and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. The reigning Australian Open champion has met the World No.34 twice on the tour, winning both matches. But the upcoming match will be their first on clay.

Sinner, after ending Richard Gasquet’s career, became the first man born in 1990 or later to have a 16-match winning streak at Grand Slams. At the French Open, Sinner produced his best when he reached the semifinals last year, losing a five-set battle to eventual winner Carlos Alcaraz. If Sinner wins the tournament, he will become the second Italian man in the Open Era to take home the French Open after Adriano Panatta in 1976.

The French Open is Sinner’s third tournament of the season as after defending his Australian Open crown, he stayed on the sidelines for three months because of the doping ban. His comeback tournament was the Italian Open, where Sinner reached the final for the first time, only to lose to Alcaraz in straight sets.

Sinner could set up a match against the four-time Grand Slam champion in the final. For the first time in Grand Slam events, Sinner and Alcaraz are seeded first and second, respectively.

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