NEWSLETTER | SINNER ENTERS THE TOP FIVE WHILE SWIATEK WINS BEIJING

Sinner is the first Italian man since 1976 to make the top five while swiatek also triumphs in Beijing

By Stephen Higgins | 9th October 2023

Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner is positioning himself as possibly the next maiden major winner | Crosscourt View

The last time Italy had a male player inside the world’s top five, Gerald Ford was President of the United States and Punk Rock was in its infancy.

That was until this week.

After a stellar showing in Beijing, where he beat two of the planet’s best to win the title, 22-year-old Jannik Sinner is now the world no.4.

The Peninsula has had quite a wait for a male star to match Adriano Panatta’s feat, though Italy has enjoyed significant success on the women’s side during that spell.

While Fabio Fognini and Matteo Berrettini breached the top 10 without hitting the top 5, former Roland Garros champion Francesca Schiavone (no.4 in 2011), and former Roland Garros finalist Sara Errani (no.5 in 2013), both achieved the feat.

When it comes to a glorious ball striker like Sinner, who also possesses incredible athleticism and a level head, it was only a matter of time before such heights were ascended.

A ski champion in his youth from the Alpine town of San Candido, Sinner only focused on tennis in his teens. He really made his name in 2019 with three tournament victories on the bounce on the ITF and Challenger circuit. Sinner rose from 553 to 78 by that season’s end and upset the field in Milan to win the Next Gen Finals.

From there, it’s been steady progress as Sinner overcame various niggly injuries to amass nine singles titles and ever improving performances at the grand slams. In the past season or so, Sinner has also developed an exciting rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz.

Their matches have become blockbuster events and the Italian leads the head-to-head 4-3 after defeating the Spaniard in the Beijing semis. In last week’s final, Sinner defeated Daniil Medvedev for the first time (7-6 7-6) after six straight losses.

Now up to four in the world and with super coach Darren Cahill in his corner, the next step for the 2023 Wimbledon semi-finalist is a major final. That looks a matter of when not if.

BEIJING | WTA 100

It was an important week for Iga Swiatek in the Chinese capital as the Pole rediscovered some of her best form after uneven recent displays (by her standards).

After a surprising loss to Veronika Kudermetova in Tokyo last month, the former world no.1 rebounded in style as she secured her fifth title of the season with a 6-2 6-2 victory over Liudmila Samsonova. It capped off a strong event for the 22-year-old that also included wins over Coco Gauff and Caroline Garcia.

The 16th title of Swiatek’s career edges her closer to Aryna Sabalenka in the no.1 spot, while Samsonova moves up to 16th place.

ASTANA | ATP 250

Adrian Mannarino earned his fourth career title and second of the season (Newport) after a strong recovery in the Kazakhstan final. The Frenchman was a set and a break down against Seb Korda before he turned it around to win 4-6 6-3 6-2.

As a result, both Mannarino and Korda have just about returned to their career highs at no.23 and no.26 in the rankings respectively.