Superior Sinner

Match Analysis

Superior Sinner

On Sunday, World No. 1 Jannik Sinner wrapped up a ridiculous 2024 with his 8th trophy of the season. The freckled linguine noodle won the ATP Finals on home soil, beating Taylor Fritz in a rematch of the US Open Final.

The Italian cruised to a 6-4, 6-4 victory in what felt like a “never had a doubt” type of match. So why did it feel that way?

First, he served incredibly well. Sinner made 71% of his first serves, and hit an Isner-like 14 aces. And while these stats are impressive, they don’t tell the whole story.

At 5-4 Duece in the first set (read: a huge point), Jannik hit a timely ace. A few points later at Ad-Out, he hit another unreturned serve to save break point. Two minutes later, the set was over. Sinner’s serve was consistent, fast, and clutch, a trifecta that made it impossible for Taylor to break. 5-4 Ad-Out was the only break point the American saw all match.

Second, Sinner moves way better than the 6’ 5” Fritz, and the disparity was on full display.

Jannik often took his backhand down-the-line early in rallies (don’t try this at home kids, your coaches will yell at you if you miss), to get Fritz on the move and open up the court. The World No. 1s now had options: an inside out forehand, a backhand angle crosscourt, a fire-starting forehand down the line, all of which put Taylor on the defensive.

While Fritz tried to do the same to Sinner, the Italian’s speed allowed him to defend Fritz’ attacks better, get to a neutral point in the rally, and not concede court position. In a nutshell, Sinner beat Taylor at his own game, the difference being the Italian’s superior movement.

Looking ahead, both players will conclude their seasons at Davis Cup this week. And for those wondering, Sinner still awaits a decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport on a possible suspension in 2025 for his doping case. We’ll know more about that early in the new year.

Trivia

Only one player has ever beaten Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal in the same tournament. Who was it?

A. David Nalbandian

B. Andy Murray

C. Robin Söderling

D. Daniil Medvedev

Find out at the bottom!

Meet the Player

Elina Svitolina

From: Ukraine 🇺🇦

Best Slam Result: Semis

Career High Ranking: 3

Fun Amazing Fact: is incredibly active in supporting Ukraine, the Ukrainian Tennis Federation, and the national team during the war through her foundation

Game Analysis: Svitolina has a solid all court game, and has top notch court awareness. She’s quick to notice a short ball to attack, or when to back up and defend high over the net. Her sound decision-making is a reflection of her 14 years on tour

Career Prediction: The 30 year old Ukrainian is on the back stretch of her career, having already (and impressively) clawed her way back to the top 25 after having a child. I think (and hope) she’s got one more slam quarterfinal run in her.

ps - Svitolina’s ask: watch the Billie Jean King Cup this week and root for the Ukrainian women!

Shot of the Week

Chest Bump

Let’s give doubles its flowers. Who better than the Bryan bros? The first point of this highlight reel is a great little reward after your first meeting today. Enjoy 😎

News

Headlines From the Tours

😭 One of my biggest regrets? Not seeing Roger, Rafa or Novak play live. While the last one is still possible, Rafa is playing his last ever professional event this week (Davis Cup) in his home country. To honor Nadal, “Gracias, Rafa” is painted on the outside of the stadium in size a million font.

🎾 Alexander Zverev learned that many ball manufacturers switched to cheaper materials during the pandemic. So now, balls fluff up faster, maintain less pressure, and travel through the air slower. Why does this matter? Two reasons. First, they don’t give big servers like Zverev quite the advantage that they used to. Second, every tournament can choose which balls it uses, and many players say that the inconsistency leads to arm/shoulder injuries. Check out Zverev’s full interview here.

😈 If you didn’t know, Yonex fines its players for smashing rackets. So after paying the fines and spending a year gluing his sticks back together, Nick Kyrgios is returning to the tour this January in Brisbane. While I don’t love Nick’s off-court personality at times, he’s incredibly entertaining on court, so I welcome him with open arms.

👀 One to Watch: Nishesh Basavareddy. The 19 year old Stanford Cardinal earned a main draw wild card into January’s Australian Open after consistently posting strong results on the ATP Challenger tour since June. Remember kids, stay in tennis and eat your vegetables.

Memes

Answer

A. David Nalbandian

Nalbandian pulled off the impossible at the 2007 Madrid Open, where he beat Nadal in the quarters, Djokovic in the semis, and Federer in the final.

The even crazier part? He beat Roger and Rafa again at the Paris Masters 1000 one week later 🤯