Jannik Sinner Breaks Novak Djokovic’s Record but Still Chases Roger Federer After US Open Win

Jannik Sinner is simply untouchable at the moment. The World No.1 and four-time slam king is leaving no stone unturned at Flushing Meadows to show how much ‘locked in’ he is to capture a fifth major after conquering the Gentlemen’s trophy on grass nearly two months ago. Currently, the American hard court is his battleground, and the Italian warrior is showing no signs of slowing down. With his latest US Open triumph, he’s now reached yet another career milestone, and has done that faster than the 24-time Grand Slam champion, Novak Djokovic.

Sinner beat Alexander Bublik on Monday at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in the fourth round encounter. The Italian didn’t waste much time and wrapped up the match in just an hour and 21 minutes. With a score line of 6-1, 6-1, 6-1, Sinner is now through to the quarterfinals and guess what? With the R16 win, Sinner, at just 24  years and 8 days of age, also became the “youngest player in the Open Era to reach all four Men’s Singles QFs at Grand Slams in consecutive seasons, surpassing Novak Djokovic (24y 99d)”, according to OptaAce. However, there’s one man he couldn’t beat…

While he may have surpassed Djokovic in one department, Sinner is still behind another Big Three member and Swiss Maestro Roger Federer. Monday night’s victory was the Italian’s 75th in 82 matches while being World No.1 in ATP rankings. Impressive, right?

However, there are several former greats who took fewer matches to reach the same number of match wins as World No.1. For example, Bjorn Borg did it in 78 matches while the likes of Jimmy Connors and 20-time slam king Federer took just 81 matches. Well, there’s always a stat or two you can miss out on, right? But when you are Sinner, chances are for you to most likely stay ahead of the league.

It becomes evident with yet another milestone earned by the World No.1 after the fourth round victory on Monday. Interestingly, he’s mirrored Djokovic, again, with this one.

Jannik Sinner replicates Djokovic’s rare US Open performance after a decade

Back in 2015, the 24-time slam king was on a roll with his hard court campaign in New York. Then 28, the Serbian went on to win clinch a third career slam after he topped arch rival and former ATP icon Roger Federer. In the summit clash, Novak Djokovic won with a score line of 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. However, what emerged as the biggest highlight in his victorious US Open run that season was Djokovic’s special performance in the semis.

Playing against defending champion Marin Cilic, he dropped only three overall games. The final score line read 6-0, 6-1, 6-2 for the former World No.1 as he advanced into the final.

Now, after a decade, Sinner has mirrored Djokovic. In Monday’s fourth round battle against Bublik, the Italian also conceded just three overall games before wrapping up the match in straight sets. He’s the first ATP player, since Djokovic in 2015’s edition, to do so in the second week at the Flushing Meadows, according to OptaAce. Simply remarkable isn’t it?

But the journey to defend his 2024 crown isn’t over yet. Next up, Sinner will go up against compatriot Lorenzo Musetti in the quarterfinal. Currently, the four-time slam winner leads the H2H tally 2-0. Their last meeting took place two years ago during the Monte Carlo Masters. Back then, Sinner bested Musetti in straight sets in the quarterfinal. It will be intriguing to see if the latter manages to take his revenge this time.

What’s your prediction for this matchup? Let us know in the comments below. For all the latest updates from the Flushing Meadows, don’t forget to follow our live US Open blog.