About Jannik Sinner

Going into 2023, the young Italian Jannik Sinner looked like a very good player, but not yet someone who was about to win a Grand Slam and climb into the top ranks — unlike his friend and rival, Carlos Alcaraz, who had already captured his first major in 2022 and would get another the following season. Week to week, the hard-hitting Sinner would find some massive shots, but he also frequently came up with errors.

But during 2023, he started to become much more consistent, and make some small changes to his game with coaches Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill. It had a big impact. It all started with making a change to the serve.

Almost three months ago, Sinner won the Australian Open, coming from two sets down to triumph 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 against Daniil Medvedev. In the semis, Sinner jumped on No. 1 Novak Djokovic 6-1, 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-3 — his fourth win against the Serb, something not a lot of players can boast of having. His forehand and his backhand were hefty, as usual, but look carefully, and there were there were also new aspects to his play during the two weeks.

Most obviously and…