Jannik Sinner is a fighter for sure! The 23-year-old Italian claimed the Gentleman’s title at Wimbledon on Sunday, defeating two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz. The match began tricky, with the Spaniard taking the first set. But Sinner’s sheer grit shone through as he rose to win the next three sets—a truly unforgettable moment. His journey to the final wasn’t easy either, something his former Davis Cup coach would definitely agree with.

Filippo Volandri, who coached Team Italy and Sinner to back-to-back Davis Cup wins in 2023 and 2024, expressed deep admiration for the World No.1 in an interview with La Repubblica. He highlighted Sinner’s rise against the odds, especially facing a champion who had bested him at the French Open final. Volandri was impressed by the Italian’s resilience despite an earlier injury.

He said, “The elbow problem was not a trivial matter: an exceptional, daily effort was made. Kudos to the Federation’s medical staff, who once again stepped up. Sinner is always very attentive to taking care of even the smallest detail, and that’s what makes the difference: after the very delicate match with Dimitrov, he didn’t make a single mistake.” And he’s certainly right.

During the tournament, Jannik Sinner sustained an elbow injury and fell two sets down before Grigor Dimitrov retired in their fourth-round clash. Quickly easing concerns about his arm, he nullified Ben Shelton’s power in straight sets over two hours and 19 minutes. Then came the semis against an injured but fierce Novak Djokovic. Sinner showed no sign of discomfort, ousting the seven-time champion in straight sets. How did he pull it off?

As Filippo noted, Sinner is meticulous, and so are his coaches. After the injury, Sinner got an MRI and reduced practice time on off days, opting for light hitting to ease strain. Coach Darren Cahill noted he “lost about six or seven miles per hour on average speed off the forehand” and serve, which could have been a problem. But since Jannik is the champion now, everything clearly worked in his favor!

Not to mention, Jannik came into the tournament without a physio and trainer, Marco Panichi and Ulises Badio. Having just announced his split with them earlier, how did he overcome his injury without these crucial members? Well, it wasn’t without its troubles!

Jannik Sinner confesses how his injury affected his game

On July 9, after carving his path past Ben Shelton in the Wimbledon quarterfinals, Sinner opened up about the hurdles he faced during the battle. “Yeah, I mean, when you are in a match with a lot of tension, you try not to think about it. It has improved a lot since yesterday to today. Yesterday, my day was very short on the practice court—20 minutes with the coaches only,” he shared. Still, no excuses—“There is no better stage to play tennis, and I think I showed this today,” he added, tipping his hat to the crowd: “Again, the atmosphere helps me so much, so thank you so much for the support.”

Jannik Sinner has turned into Shelton’s ultimate challenge, now boasting six straight wins over the American after that decisive Wimbledon quarterfinal victory. Even Ben found himself at a loss for words describing the intensity of Sinner’s game. “His ball speed is really high. Never seen anything like it. You don’t see anything like it when you’re going through the draw,” Shelton admitted. “When you play him, it’s almost like things are in [two times] speed. I’m usually pretty good at adjusting to that speed.”

Shelton went on, “It’s difficult when a guy’s hitting the ball that big, that consistently off both wings, and serving the way he is.” His honest takeaway? Sinner’s relentless power and precision create a whole different game to which opponents must constantly adapt.

Now, with Jannik Sinner gearing up for the hard-court season, all eyes are on him. Will this Italian powerhouse keep the momentum rolling and add more titles to his collection? Let us know what you think in the comments!