Novak Djokovic may have decided to play in this year’s Italian Open, but it’s clear that his priorities lie elsewhere.
After all, whilst he is still always in the business of winning, it is the Majors that truly dominate his thinking.
All he needs is one more title to break the record and become the outright most successful player in Grand Slam history. Any tournament that comes before is merely a warm-up.
That is likely why, when asked if he thought Jannik Sinner could and would win the Italian Open, Novak Djokovic was so keen to concede to the world number one.
Novak Djokovic discusses Jannik Sinner’s chances of winning the Italian Open
Speaking in perfect Italian during this recent press conference, the Serbian began by glowingly assessing Sinner’s chances of success in his home country.
“He’ll probably do it again this year,” Djokovic began. “Because he’s really strong and his playing style is truly impressive.”
When does Jannik Sinner next lose a tennis match? 👀
He continued, using this opportunity to reinforce his position on the two-week Masters 1000 events too: “It’s difficult, obviously it’s difficult. Yes, the format has changed. Now we have almost two weeks, as you said before. I don’t like this. Personally, I like the old format of having one week for the Masters 1000 tournaments more. You have two weeks for rest, but that’s the way it is.
“You have to adapt and accept that there are some advantages, like having a day in between each match, which allows you to recover better. And I think this definitely helps some players.
“But obviously, it’s difficult because you have different surfaces and conditions. Indoor, outdoor.
“But over the years, Jannik has been a very complete player, which has obviously been demonstrated in the last two years. He’s rightfully number one in the world.”
Sinner might have praised Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Federer in his recent press conference, but he will surely believe that he can one day end up with all the accolades they enjoyed and more.
Jannik Sinner closes in on Novak Djokovic’s all-time Masters 1000 record
With Sinner having recently matched an all-time record of Nadal and Federer’s, he now has Djokovic firmly in his sights.
And, given the lack of competition throughout the Italian Open draw, it’s hard not to imagine him with the title already.
Who would win this legendary showdown?
If he were to get to the final and claim the crown, which would be an astounding sixth straight at the Masters 1000 level, he would have actually already surpassed Djokovic’s legendary feat.
After all, he currently holds the record for the longest win streak in Masters 1000 history, standing at 31.
But, with Sinner already on 28, he only needs to reach the quarter-finals to break it.
