Jannik Sinner has to defend a lot of points between now and the end of the season and needs to play his best tennis if he wants to stay at the top of the ATP rankings, but the Italian ace is not scared of this and has already shown that he can be dominant on hard courts.
The world number 1 passed the first two rounds of the Cincinnati Masters 1000 without losing a single set and risked something only in the second set of the match against Gabriel Diallo, who managed to create some problems for him thanks to his excellent serve.
The feeling is that the four-time Grand Slam champion has learned to manage his energies in the best possible way and knows perfectly when it is the right time to raise his level. The 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria will try to defend the title won in Ohio last year, before focusing all his attention on the US Open where he will try to replicate the run made last season.
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His next opponent in Cincinnati will be French veteran Adrian Mannarino, who overturned the odds by eliminating local idol Tommy Paul in a match in which he used all his experience at the highest level. However, Mannarino has lost all three matches played against Jannik on the professional tour and will need a feat to eliminate the world number 1 in these conditions.
Sinner is in his prime
In an interview with 'La Gazzetta dello Sport', former Italian ace and top analyst Paolo Bertolucci made a brilliant comparison between Sinner and Federer: "The general impression is that this version of Jannik is totally unapproachable for all the other players except Carlos Alcaraz and that this gap is destined to increase further.
Sinner knows himself perfectly and comes to every tournament in the best possible condition, just like Roger Federer did. He is not only focused on the present but also thinks about the future, not being afraid to miss important tournaments if it involves a risk to his preparation."
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The current world No.1 will be back in action for the round of 16 tomorrow.
