ROME.- After fifty years, Italian tennis once again tasted victory in the Italic Forum with the successor of Adriano Panatta: world number 1 Jannik Sinner completed his collection of Masters 1000 by beating the Norwegian this Sunday Casper Ruud in the final of Rome.
In one hour and 45 minutes, Sinner, 24, won 6-4 and 6-4 against the world number 25, whom he had swept 6-0 and 6-1 in the quarterfinals of this same tournament last year, to become the first Italian, in the men’s team, to inscribe his name in the record of the Italian Open since 1976.
A true symbol: Panatta hugged him before Sinner received his trophy, a few months after the disappearance of the other Italian tennis legend, Nicola Pietrangeli.
The phenomenon of red curls born in Alto Adige, a Germanophobic region in the northeast of Italyhas definitely become the best Italian tennis player in history.
Sinner is the second player of all time, after Novak Djokovicin conquering the nine Masters 1000 on the calendar in less than three years.
After a laborious start to the final, in which he lost his first serve and then immediately recovered his rival’s serve, it was necessary to wait until the ninth game for Sinner to take the lead with three dropshots that dismantled Ruud.
The Italian, already pushed to the limit in the semifinals by the Russian Daniil Medvedev (9th), then won the first set with a blank game on serve after 49 minutes.
With his serve again and an opponent who was out of gear, who began to make more mistakes, Sinner quickly opened the gap in the second set to go 3-1 and then 5-3, before hitting his first match point with a forehand winner.
“A golden period”
“It has been a long time since an Italian has won here, it is something good for our tennis, which is experiencing a golden period. It was not a perfect tennis match, but it crowns two and a half months of incredible tennis. I am super happy, it has been very hard on a physical level,” Sinner declared before the formal ceremony.
In the electrifying atmosphere of the Campo Centrale, pushed by 10,500 spectators warmed by a sun that had finally returned, Sinner chained his 29th consecutive victory and extended his record winning streak in Masters 1000 to 34.
He scored his 29th title, his 10th in Masters 1000 and his fifth of the year after Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo and Madrid.
In the absence of his great rival Carlos Alcarazinjured, Sinner will be the big favorite in Roland Garros (May 24-June 7), where he hopes to complete his collection of titles from Grand Slam.
Italian crown also in doubles
Three weeks from now, at only 24 years old, the double winner of the Davis Cup (2023 and 2024) perhaps he will have won all the most prestigious titles in tennis, with the exception of Olympic gold.
One year after the double Jasmine Paolinicrowned in singles for the first time for an Italian in Rome since 1985, and in doubles, Italyin the midst of its golden age, repeated the feat, but this time on the male side.
Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori They won the doubles final against the Argentine-Spanish couple formed by Horacio Zeballos and Marcel Granollers; 7-6 (10/8), 6-7 (3/7) and 10-3.
