One thing people have noticed about Jannik Sinner is how unflappable he’s been on his run to the Australian Open final. And the big smile.
In the semi-finals against 10-time title-winner Novak Djokovic, who had never lost a match after reaching the last four in Australia, Sinner won the first two sets quickly, absorbed the 24-time major champion’s comeback and then won it in four.
He didn’t face a break point. He didn’t get ruffled by a noisy Rod Laver Arena crowd, or overawed by the occasion. Or what was on the line: a first major final.
“Sunday is a final. It’s different emotions. In my mind today I knew it was semi-final. It’s not that you win the tournament like this,” the 22-year-old Italian said after conquering Djokovic. That nature of his unlikely to change when he takes on 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, a two-time runner-up at Melbourne Park, in the championship match on Sunday.
Medvedev became the first man since Pete Sampras in 1995 to reach the Australian Open final with two comebacks from two sets down, having been two points from defeat before beating Alexander Zverev 5-7, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-3. That earned him a spot in a sixth major final.
Sinner, in his 17th grand slam tournament, is the first Italian to reach an Australian Open singles final. His run has been compared by some with Roger Federer’s first title. The Swiss great hadn’t reached the semi-finals in his first 16 majors, then he won Wimbledon.
It also helped that he had the Carota Boys behind him after the Italian Open in May. What began as a spur-of-the-moment idea among six of his supporters to dress up as carrots has turned into a travelling fan club.
With inputs from AP/PTI