Pitted against a brick wall on an atypically cool night in late January, Jannik Sinner lost his head and with it his stranglehold on the Australian Open. But reframing his thinking has the Italian on the verge of setting a stunning new record.
Should the world No.1, who left Melbourne diminished after a loss to Novak Djokovic, clinch the Madrid Masters to be held over the next fortnight in Spain, Sinner will become the first man to win five straight Masters tier tournaments.
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The mighty Djokovic has managed to win four straight Masters titles three times. Rafael Nadal pulled off the streak once. But with Djokovic and his prime rival Carlos Alcaraz absent, Sinner is set to soar to new heights in Spain over the next fortnight.
It is a significant turnaround for a star who surrendered his Australian Open dominance in surprising fashion in January.
Even at the age of 38, Djokovic proved the toughest of beats, particularly on a court he had won 10 Australian Opens. There was no shame in Sinner falling to the King. But there was surprise in the manner he did when breaking a clearly stated vow.
Sinner can be metronomic and he blasted the ball from side to side harder and harder has he tried to hit through his rival, who was suited by slower conditions and absorbed the pace on route to a five set marathon finishing after midnight.
There was none of the variety or surprise the Italian had declared he needed to find after a loss to Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open a few months earlier and he paid a significant price against the 24-time major winner.
The 24-year-old won more points than the all-time legend, but failed to seize just one of the eight break points he held in the decider. Having also surrendered his US Open title, his clear supremacy on hard courts was diminished.
“Most of the time he served very well. You have to say that,” Sinner said later.
“But I had my chances. I was in the rallies a couple of times. I missed the shots. It can happen. That’s tennis. That’s how tennis works.
“(This is) small extra motivation (and) hopefully I can see some (sic), take it also as a lesson, maybe, to see what I can improve on.”
Two nights later, with Sinner back in Europe, his great rival Alcaraz clinched his first Australian Open over Djokovic to become the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam. The Prince of Murcia was on top of the world.
SINNER ASCENDS AGAIN
The script can flip quickly in tennis and just shy of three months later, Sinner stands within reach of clinching a new record in tennis while his primary rivals nurse injury concerns.
Having reliquished the world No.1 ranking, Sinner copped another surprise loss in Doha in February, admittedly to a rising star in Jakub Mensik. But since then the Italian has played breathtaking tennis to reestablish his ascendancy.
The tours in tennis are tiered. The grand slams in Melbourne, Paris, London and New York trump all. But the second tier – the Masters events – are significant tournaments as well.
Djokovic is the only man to win all nine Masters tournaments. The fact that he has managed to win them all at least twice is among the many measures of the greatness of the Serbian, who has not played since Indian Wells.
But not even Novak has managed to win five Masters tournaments in succession, a feat Sinner will manage if he is able to successfully navigate the next fortnight in Madrid.
The 24-year-old, who will have a bye in the tournament that began with qualifying on Monday, began his streak last October when winning the Paris Masters played indoors.
Co-coached by Aussie master Darren Cahill, Sinner sizzled in the Sunshine Swing in March when the first man to Indian Wells and the Miami Open without dropping a set.
The right-hander, who fell to Alcaraz in a classic Roland Garros final last year and needs only the French Open to complete the career Grand Slam, was marvellous in Monte Carlo.
In winning his first clay court Masters with a triumph over Alcaraz in the principality earlier this month, he joined Djokovic and Nadal as players with a four Masters streak.
History beckons in Madrid, particularly with Alcaraz and Djokovic absent. The injury to Alcaraz, who pulled out of the Barcelona Open mid-tournament before his withdrawal from Madrid, is one to watch given the havoc wrist problems cause.
Sinner is fit and firing. And is return to the top stems in part from those lessons learned in the loss to Djokovic in Melbourne.
VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE
Sinner is serving sensationally, with his pace and precision better than ever before.
Analyst Matthew Willis noted that the reigning Wimbledon champion has not only lifted his consistency and pace on the first serve, but the fact he is more accurate has made life far harder for his rivals.
In his Monte Carlo triumph over Alcaraz, who withdrew midway through the Barcelona Open and will not play in Madrid due to wrist soreness, he was able to pin his rival behind the baseline with greater frequency while also keeping the ball off his forehand when possible.
Pivotal to his ability to succeed throughout the week in Monte Carlo was his proficiency with the drop shot, something that is a weapon for Alcaraz but until now less so for the Italian.
The variety he declared he must adopt to keep pace with Alcaraz and the subtlety that was absent against Djokovic in Melbourne has become a core of his game in recent triumphs.
As he seeks a history-making fifth straight Masters title and bids to add the second of leg of the clay court Masters swing in the Spanish tournament, his coaches are pleased.
“We are really happy, because I think from after the first two matches, he started to feel better the game (with) more drop shots, more variation with the height of the ball, with the serve. We are really, really impressed with his level here,” co-coach Simone Vagnozzi told the ATP Tour website.
“We are really happy because, of course, one of our goals of this year was winning a big title on clay. There is no better way than to start like this. I think I am most happy that after Miami and Indian Wells, after such a tough month, he came here and all tournament he was improving his game.”
WHAT ABOUT THE AUSSIES
Not surprisingly, Australia’s best hopes of a decent run in the Madrid Masters – and throughout the entirety of the clay season – rest with Alex de Minaur, who spent half his childhood in Spain when living in coastal Alicante.
It took the world No. 8, who followed an Australian Open quarterfinal run by clinching the Rotterdam Open (a tier below the Masters), until a couple of years ago to find his feet on clay but he has proven proficient on the shifting surface since then.
A Roland Garros quarterfinalist in 2024, the 27-year-old’s form has been mixed in recent weeks, with the Australian star below his best in the Sunshine Swing before reaching the last eight at the Monte Carlo Masters.
De Minaur reached the last 16 in Madrid last year and will be seeking a decent run in a familiar environment to regain momentum with Roland Garros just a month away.
The Aussies in Madrid aside, Australia’s most recent grand slam singles finalist Nick Kyrgios was on court at Melbourne Park last week, blasting balls and bellowing away in a session on the indoor courts.
The Canberran has battled fitness issues for several season and cast doubt on his capacity to play regularly again, but it was recently announced that he will play a grass court tournament in Spain prior to Wimbledon.