Jannik Sinner Responds to Roger Federer’s Hypothetical Match Comments

Jannik Sinner might not currently be the World No. 1 anymore, but he is back in Melbourne once again as the favourite to defend his Australian Open crown. A third straight title would see the Italian become just the second men’s player in the Open Era to complete a three-peat in Melbourne.

Ahead of the tournament, much of the discussion has centred on comments made by none other than Roger Federer about the Italian.

Federer Talks Facing Sinner

Federer, a six-time champion in Melbourne, was asked how he would prepare for a hypothetical match against Sinner during a press conference ahead of his Australian Open opening ceremony appearance. The Swiss legend responded:

“At Wimbledon, when Grigor was playing against Jannik and I was sitting there, that made it easy to think how it could’ve been because Grigor plays very similar to how I played. I think it was one of the first times I thought how would it have been to play Jannik in a match situation.”

The match Federer referenced was the Wimbledon encounter in which Grigor Dimitrov, leading by two sets against Sinner, suffered an injury and was forced to retire.

It was also a match where Sinner himself had tweaked his elbow earlier, yet still managed an unlikely escape that ultimately saw him go on to win the Wimbledon Championships.

Sinner Responds

Sinner has since responded to the 20-time Major champion, sharing his thoughts on how such a matchup might have unfolded and whether drawing conclusions from a single match is fair. While characteristically humble in his response, the Italian was also keen to stress that every match presents a different challenge.

“I definitely would have liked to face him at least once in a competitive match, just to see what he’s like. Every player is different, not only in their game but also in their approach: he certainly plays very similarly to Grigor, but they are still two different players. Grigor played very well in that match, changing the pace a lot, and he definitely saw my weaknesses, especially in the combination of grass and that style of game. During preparation, we worked a lot on that part, to be more ready for the next match like this. But yes, I would have loved to face him, Roger is perhaps the most magical player of all time… but I arrived a little too late!”

Interestingly, Sinner has won each of his last five matches against Dimitrov and had dropped just one set across their previous four meetings before that Wimbledon encounter.

While it is fair to say that a Federer versus Sinner matchup would have captured the attention of the entire tennis world, the evolution of the modern game suggests it might not have been quite as straightforward as Federer implies when facing a player in the midst of a truly historic, two-year-and-counting run.