Sinner Proud to Spearhead Italian Movement After Taking Top Ranking 

Jannik Sinner of Italy celebrates winning his Men's Singles quarterfinal match against Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria during the French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 04 June 2024. (EPA)
Jannik Sinner of Italy celebrates winning his Men's Singles quarterfinal match against Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria during the French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 04 June 2024. (EPA)
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Sinner Proud to Spearhead Italian Movement After Taking Top Ranking 

Jannik Sinner of Italy celebrates winning his Men's Singles quarterfinal match against Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria during the French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 04 June 2024. (EPA)
Jannik Sinner of Italy celebrates winning his Men's Singles quarterfinal match against Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria during the French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 04 June 2024. (EPA)

Jannik Sinner took an unexpected path to the world number one ranking on Tuesday after Novak Djokovic's French Open withdrawal but the youngster said it was the culmination of years of hard work and represented a proud moment for Italy.

Sinner arrived at Roland Garros needing to reach the final to assure himself of the top spot next week but got confirmation when organizers announced that Djokovic had pulled out with a knee injury sustained in his fourth-round win on Monday.

It meant the 22-year-old, who was informed of the news shortly after his 6-2 6-4 7-6(3) quarter-final win over Grigor Dimitrov, becomes the first Italian man to achieve the feat.

"It means a lot to me for sure. It's not the way we all were expecting. He (Djokovic) had two long, tough matches, five sets, so it's tough. The first one he finished really late also," Sinner told reporters.

"It's tough also for the tournament. Novak retiring, it's always tough. Talking about myself, I'm very happy about this achievement. It's a lot of work we put in daily. It's a daily routine. Obviously happy to have this number.

"In two days there's a very important match for me, the semi-finals (against Carlos Alcaraz), so I'm focused about that at the moment. But yes, happy to have this number now."

Sinner, who guided Italy to the Davis Cup title last year, said the country deserved its recent successes.

"It means a lot, but I think it's great for Italy. We're a great country with great coaches and players and we can see this now how this moment is," Sinner said.

"I'm happy to be part of this Italian movement. People, they start to play tennis now more and more, which is great to see. I think that's the most important."

Sinner's game has moved to another level since he started to work with Darren Cahill, who with Simone Vagnozzi helped him win his maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.

"We started to work now nearly two years (ago). It's a huge pleasure for me to have him. I still remember the first week we had in Eastbourne on grass. Immediately I had good feelings with him because he has a lot of experience obviously," Sinner said.

"I know he brought different kind of players to world number one. He had great achievements also with different players. He knows how to adapt to each player and I think this is a quality that's amazing.

"Him and also the combination with Simone is really good. They're two different coaches, but they work together well. They are humble and they respect each other. The combination is very good. I'm lucky to have both of them and the rest of the team."



Murray to Coach Djokovic Through Australian Open

FILE - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, left, and Britain's Andy Murray holds their trophy after their final match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium, Sunday, June 5, 2016 in Paris. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)
FILE - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, left, and Britain's Andy Murray holds their trophy after their final match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium, Sunday, June 5, 2016 in Paris. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)
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Murray to Coach Djokovic Through Australian Open

FILE - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, left, and Britain's Andy Murray holds their trophy after their final match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium, Sunday, June 5, 2016 in Paris. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)
FILE - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, left, and Britain's Andy Murray holds their trophy after their final match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium, Sunday, June 5, 2016 in Paris. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)

The recently retired Andy Murray is going to team up with longtime rival Novak Djokovic as his coach, they both announced Saturday, with plans to prepare for — and work together through — the Australian Open in January.
It was a stunning bit of news as tennis moves toward its offseason, a pairing of two of the most successful and popular players in the sport, both of whom are sometimes referred to as members of a so-called Big Four that also included Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic is a 24-time Grand Slam champion who has spent more weeks at No. 1 than any other player in tennis history. Murray won three major trophies and two Olympic singles gold medals and finished 2016 atop the ATP rankings. He ended his playing career after the Paris Summer Games in August.
Both men are 37 and were born a week apart in May 1987. They started facing each other as juniors and wound up meeting 36 times as professionals, with Djokovic holding a 25-11 advantage.
“We played each other since we were boys — 25 years of being rivals, of pushing each other beyond our limits. We had some of the most epic battles in our sport. They called us game-changers, risk-takers, history-makers,” Djokovic posted on social media over photos and videos from some of their matches. “I thought our story may be over. Turns out, it has one final chapter. It’s time for one of my toughest opponents to step into my corner. Welcome on board, Coach — Andy Murray.”
Djokovic's 2024 season is over, and it was not up to his usual, high standards. He didn't win a Grand Slam trophy; his only title, though, was meaningful to him: a gold medal for Serbia in singles at the Summer Games.
Djokovic has been without a full-time coach since splitting in March from Goran Ivanisevic.
“I’m going to be joining Novak’s team in the offseason, helping him to prepare for the Australian Open," The Associated Press quoted Murray as saying in a statement released by his management team. "I’m really excited for it and looking forward to spending time on the same side of the net as Novak for a change, helping him to achieve his goals.”
Their head-to-head series on tour includes an 11-8 lead for Djokovic in finals, and 8-2 at Grand Slam tournaments.
Djokovic beat Murray four times in the Australian Open final alone — in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016.
Two of the most important victories of Murray's career came with Djokovic on the other side of the net. One was in the 2012 US Open final, when Murray claimed his first Grand Slam title. The other was in the 2013 Wimbledon final, when Murray became the first British man in 77 years to win the singles championship at the All England Club.
Next year's Australian Open starts on Jan. 12.