Djokovic on Sinner Strength

By Richard Pagliaro | Friday, May 8, 2026
Photo credit: Riyadh Season/Netflix

The son of a chef, Jannik Sinner sure has a voracious appetite for victory.

The ATP Masters 1000 calendar is merely a menu to satisfy Sinner’s taste for triumph.

On Sunday, Sinner annihilated Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-2 to capture his maiden Mutua Madrid Open—and make major ATP Masters 1000 history.

World No. 1 Sinner made dual history collecting his record fifth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 championship—Paris, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo and Madrid—and becoming the first man to win the first four ATP Masters 1000 titles of a season. Sinner extended his Masters winning streak to 28 matches.

Grand Slam King Novak Djokovic, owns a record 40 Masters championships, says Sinner’s biggest strength is a lack of weakness.

“[Sinner is] a very complete player, who has obviously shown this in the last two years and is No. 1 in the world with good reason,” Djokovic told the media in Rome.

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The top-seeded Sinner, a former junior ski champion, is one of the game’s purest ball strikers capable of coming out of the corners and changing defense to offense with a single swing.

Sinner received a hero’s homecoming welcome as he stepped onto the practice court for his Rome return. Riding a 23-match winning streak into the Eternal City, Sinner is playing for his maiden Rome crown and a place in ATP Masters 1000 history.

If Sinner wins Rome, he will join Djokovic as the second man to complete the set of winning all nine ATP Masters 1000 crowns.

“He will do it for sure, maybe this year,” Djokovic said. “In addition, he is very strong because of how he plays. He is really impressive.”