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Jannik Sinner reveals he has always viewed Roger Federer as "the biggest inspiration" because of the way the Swiss tennis icon was conducting himself on and off the court.
Sinner, who will be turning 23 in August, is now officially one of the very best and top players in the game, having become a Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open.
After sealing a stunning five-set comeback win over Daniil Medvedev in the Australian Open final to lift his maiden Major, Sinner conducted a traditional photo shoot at Melbourne Botanical Gardens. During his time in the gardens, Sinner was also joined by Nicholas Pashulya, one of the kids from a local tennis academy.
Sinner, who is described by his colleagues as one of the nicest and kindest guys in the locker room, was asked by Pashulya to name his idols. Answering the question, Sinner highlighted Federer as his No. 1 inspiration but also mentioned Rafael Nadal.
“When I was younger, I think the biggest inspiration was always Roger Federer because of the way he behaves on the courts, the way he treats people off the court," Sinner said in his response.
“I would say the mix of him and Rafa because, you know, also the fighting spirit of Rafa. Yeah, they are great sportsmen. But there are so many.”
Un'intervista diversa dal solito per il nostro Jannik 🥹🥹🥹#EurosportTENNIS #AusOpen #AO2024 #Sinner #Tennis pic.twitter.com/tN18eAip2q
— Eurosport IT (@Eurosport_IT) January 29, 2024
Sinner follows in the footsteps of his idol Federer
After Sinner's strong end to the 2023 season, the Italian was widely praised and applauded for taking his game to another level. Going into the 2024 season, many were curious to see if Sinner would be able to continue where he left off in late 2023 and start 2024 with a first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.
Exactly that happened and Sinner did it in a pretty impressive way, having beaten record 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic in the semifinal. During that match, Sinner didn't allow Djokovic a single break point opportunity and also became the first-ever player to beat the Serb in an Australian Open semifinal.
Now, Sinner has joined his idol Federer and other great players on the list of Grand Slam champions. At just 22, Sinner is just starting as the Italian hopes to win many more Slams before retiring.