Jannik Sinner Like the First Day of School

After waiting for two years, the public in Italy can finally see again the "hero" of tennis from the country, Jannik Sinner. Despite having three Grand Slam titles and holding the top world ranking since June 10, 2024, Sinner feels like a newcomer when in a competitive atmosphere at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Foro Italico, Rome, Italy, from May 7 to 18.

Sinner even feels as if he is like a child entering school on the first day. He has to acclimate to being surrounded by and the center of attention of many people in the tennis arena, even though the 23-year-old player is in his own environment.

Sinner is an Italian tennis player, although he is not from Rome. He was born in a small town, Innichen, in South Tyrol, in northern Italy.

After starting his journey in the professional tennis arena in 2018 and experiencing ups and downs in competition, Sinner became the first Italian tennis player to occupy the top position in the world rankings. This position, held since June 10, 2024, was achieved due to his consistent performance that year. Sinner won his first title from a Grand Slam event, namely the Australian Open, in January 2024. Three months later, he triumphed at the Miami Masters.

In the last three months of the 2024 competition season, starting from mid-August, his performance has become increasingly unmatched by other players. Sinner has only lost once out of 31 matches, resulting in titles at the Cincinnati Masters, the US Open Grand Slam, the Shanghai Masters, and the ATP Finals.

The tennis player, who has never competed in the junior category at Grand Slam events, capped off his outstanding performance in 2024 by leading Italy to retain the Davis Cup title. The only defeat Sinner faced towards the end of 2024 was against his toughest rival, Carlos Alcaraz, in the ATP 500 Beijing final.

His journey remained smooth at the beginning of 2025 by winning the Australian Open again at Melbourne Park. However, after that, Sinner had to leave the tennis competition from February 9 to May 4 to fulfill an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) regarding two doping cases that occurred in March 2024.

Sinner was deemed to have been unintentionally contaminated with a doping substance by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) through a spray used to treat wounds on his physiotherapist's hand. Clostebol, which is classified as an anabolic steroid, entered Sinner's body through the hands of the physiotherapist who massaged Sinner's back and legs.

WADA filed an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding Sinner, who was declared not guilty. CAS accepted the appeal; however, an agreement was ultimately reached between WADA and Sinner that the tennis player, who has 19 championship titles, must serve a three-month suspension.

In most of his activities during the off-season, Sinner distanced himself from the world of tennis. He did not pay attention to the competition from tournament to tournament, except for knowing the champions of a few championships. Sinner also spent much of his time with family.

He began to seriously follow tennis again during the Madrid Masters, from April 23 to May 4, while preparing to return to the court. Like an athlete about to embark on the start of the competition season, more training is being conducted to build all physical aspects.

Regarding what he aims to achieve in Rome, Sinner did not speak in detail about the results. He merely stated that his expectations are very low in terms of outcomes.

"I want to know where my level is right now after not competing for a long time. At first, I even felt strange being among so many people and being the center of their attention, but my team and I are very happy to be back," said Sinner on the official ATP website.

After winning two rounds, after getting a bye in the first round, there was still something that worried him even though he always won two sets in the second and third rounds. He defeated the lucky loser, Jesper de Jong, with a score of 6-4, 6-2, in the third round, Monday (12/5/2025) night, after two days earlier eliminating Mariano Navone. Sinner was worried because he felt he lost momentum towards the end of the first set against De Jong, even though he started the match well.

The real test for Sinner will come from Argentine tennis player Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth round, on Tuesday evening, Indonesian time. Cerundolo can match Sinner, having shared two victories in their four encounters.

He even defeated Sinner in their last meeting two years ago. That moment occurred in the same tournament and phase as they will face on Tuesday, the fourth round of the Rome Masters. At that time, Sinner lost 7-6 (3), 2-6, 2-6.

Despite appearing in front of his own public, Sinner has not achieved particularly good results at the Rome Masters since his debut in 2019. His furthest journey was reaching the quarter-finals in 2022. After that, he lost to Cerundolo the following year and missed the 2024 event due to a hip injury.

Although his journey at the 2025 Rome Masters has not progressed far, Sinner at least has the opportunity to prepare for the French Open Grand Slam, which will take place from May 25 to June 8. And, while opinions among competitors are divided regarding his doping case, Sinner remains a hero in the hearts of the Italian public. "We love you Jannik," shouted one Italian teenager watching him at the Foro Italico. (AFP)