Sinner: Djokovic match-up tells ‘me where I am’

Sinner has been drawn into the “Green Group” for the round-robin part of the event along with six-time champion and world No.1 Novak Djokovic, 2019 winner Stefanos Tsitsipas and fellow debutant Holger Rune.

He’s 0-3 against Djokovic so far in his young career, including a pair of losses at Wimbledon over the last two years. Those don’t deter him one bit.

He told Corriere della Serra that the match-up with Djokovic is so motivating to him because “you find yourself in front of someone who has won 24 Slams, three out of four this year alone. In terms of results, the best this sport has ever had”.

He added, “These are the important matches for growth, the ones for which I say: I win or I learn. Djokovic will tell me where I am. I felt closer this year in the semi-finals at Wimbledon, despite losing in three sets, than last year in the quarter-finals, when we fought for five.

“I can’t wait. These are the matches I train for every day, the ones that put a lot of pressure on me.”

Tennis legend Billie Jean King famously coined the phrase, “Pressure is a privilege,” and it’s one that Sinner whole-heartedly agrees with, especially as he embeds himself in the sport’s Top 10 and joins fellow young gun Carlos Alcaraz and Djokovic as Slam contenders.

“My goal isn’t to make money,” he said bluntly. “It’s to become the best version of me possible. Number one in the world? Well, we’ll see. Maybe number four is my limit. I want to find out.

“If I see flaws in my tennis, I will always make the choice to improve myself,” he said. “If you are not at the top, if your performance drops by three percent, the others will tear you apart. I don’t like making the same mistake twice.”