Jannik Sinner achieved his very first Sunshine Double by defeating Jiri Lehecka in the Miami Open final.
The Italian became the first-ever player to win Indian Wells and Miami back-to-back without dropping a set.
Sinner has now won three consecutive ATP 1000 events following victories in Indian Wells and the Paris Masters.
The Italian has shown a marked improvement over the last few weeks and he’s been praised for the work he’s put in on the practice court.
Marion Bartoli praises Jannik Sinner’s work in practice
Sinner suffered from a slow start to the year by his lofty standards, by losing in the Australian Open semi-final and the Qatar Open quarter-finals.
Since then, the world number two has been near-perfect and his serve in particular has undergone an incredible improvement.
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Speaking on Sky Sports Tennis following his victory in Miami, Marion Bartoli hailed Sinner’s work behind the scenes.
“He has so much trust in his team and the understanding that he wants to stay at the top of the game he has to keep on improving all the time because when you stay still, you actually go backwards,” she said.
“It takes a lot of courage and sacrifices to put those hard yards on the court. They’re tough sessions but he also mentioned that he’s capable of playing so well that gives him the pride and the joy from the reward of his work. [He is an] absolutely incredible champion and very worthy.”
Sinner now heads to the Monte Carlo Masters, which is set to begin on April 5. He is yet to win the clay court event, with his best effort coming in 2024 when he reached the semi-finals.
Tim Henman praises ‘relentless’ Jannik Sinner
Watching along with Bartoli, Tim Henman was equally impressed with Sinner’s performance against Lehecka.
Speaking after he lifted the trophy, Henman said: “An incredible performance and it’s just been relentless.”
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“It wasn’t straightforward with weather conditions, there were interruptions, there was a delayed start but, as he’s done time and time again, he gets the lead and is just relentless in all aspects of his game. He’s a worthy, worthy champion.”
Sinner has become the eighth man to win the Sunshine Double and the first since Novak Djokovic back in 2016.
The Italian joins Jim Courier, Michael Chang, Pete Sampras, Marcelo Rios, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, and Djokovic in the elite list.
