Jannik Sinner has been the stand-out player of 2024 on the ATP Tour and he has revealed that tight defeats in big matches were crucial in helping him to go to the next level.
Sinner was struggling to make his mark in the tournaments that matter this time last year, but he changed his fortunes around with a sparkling end to last year that included wins against world No 1 Novak Djokovic at the ATP Finals and another victory against the Serbian in the Davis Cup Finals.
He backed that up by winning his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and has also won titles in Rotterdam and Miami this year, with most experts suggesting he may now be the best player in the world.
Yet the Sinner of 12 months ago was not this prolific and when he picked out the matches that changed his mindset, he looks back to a defeat against Germany’s Daniel Altmaier at the French Open.
Altmaier prevailed in a five-set epic 6-7 7-6 1-6 7-6 7-5 battle, with Sinner suggesting his lack of consistency in that match focused his mind on what is required to be a champion.
“Day by day you try to get better. When you go to sleep you want to say, okay I have improved,” he told the Madrid Open podcast.
“You can win titles, but most importantly I see myself one year ago and now and I want to see a different player.
“To reach this level, you have to lose sometimes. When you lose, you can see where you need to improve and you have to improve it.
“Some matches when I was really close and I lost. Then you realise what you have done wrong.
“The close ones you win, you don’t really understand, but you lose and you can see.
“In the match against Altmaier (at the French Open last year), I was playing one set good, one set bad and then I lost in the fifth set.
“I lost so much mental energy. If I had a better attitude on the court, I don’t say I would have won, but I would have had better chances on court.
“If I had won playing this way, I would not have noticed, so I take this as a positive.
“I also had other very tough losses… at the US Open having match points against Carlos and also last year against Sachsa (Alexander Zverev at the Open), but you have to learn from that.”
Sinner also gave an insight into his mindset, as he insisted tennis was not his only priority in life, as he suggested contentment off the court is vital to success on it.
“Surround yourself with good people because the good people are always honest with you and give you great energy,” added Sinner.
“This is how I live my daily process. Family and friends are the most important and success is only a positive moment that you live for hours and days. The most important thing is the people you surround yourself with.”