Jannik Sinner has broken multiple records at a young age. He is the youngest Italian to reach the quarter-final of Roland Garros and the first ATP title win in Sofia awarded him the label as the 6th youngest player overall to win a tournament. Many see him as the future Nr.1 of tennis but does he meet the impressive stats of the three tennis legends at the same age? Data is shutting down rumors and bringing facts. This article is comparing Roger Federer’s numbers with those of the Italian prodigy.
By Daphne Seberich
After his achievements Jannik Sinner commonly gets compared to the three bigs of tennis: Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer, seemingly following their footsteps. However, is the South Tyrolean indeed the future of tennis?
Comparing the data between the 2000 ATP stats of Roger Federer and the 2020 data of Jannik Sinner is tricky. The Italian had to face the challenge of a pandemic, losing out on half of the season’s tournaments. Although he has played less than the Swiss at his current age, his numbers are impressive. Sinner is currently 34th in the ATP rankings, his best placement ever. The 2020 Sofia ATP tournament displayed the potential the Italian youngster has. The Canadian Pospisil as an opponent at the decisive match for the title complicated Sinner’s race to the top. Even though it was his first final, his nerves were of steel. Sealing the deal in three sets secured him a 100% success rate statistic playing a final. Roger Federer was more of a late bloomer. He did not win a title in the 2000 ATP season and lost both finals he reached.
An impressive stat for the South Tyrolean is the low loss percentage in Grand Slam tournaments as well as ATP Master 1000 matches in comparison to Federer. Sinner’s consistency seems to beat the 39-year old champion.
Roger Federer is without a doubt the ace master. His talent, although raw, was already recognizable in his first years as a professional tennis player. At the same time, his double faults numbers are significantly higher than the ones from the Italian, proving that mistakes were frequent for the future 5-time-ATP champion.
An interesting fact about the Sinner-Federer comparison is the percentage of matches won and lost against Top-10 players. The youngster surprised everyone by beating multiple top-ranked athletes, as the Greek Tsitsipas in Rome and the German Zverev at the Roland Garros. He won three out of the seven matches played against the crème de la crème of tennis. The Swiss won three games as well but lost eight times.
Tournaments played on the clay are preferred by the Italian, whereas Roger Federer’s winning percentage displays his superior ability on the hard floors. This data is coherent with the achievements reached by Sinner in this crazy 2020. He became the youngest Italian tennis player to reach the quarter-final stage of the Roland Garros, only throwing the towel to the clay king Rafa Nadal.
These statistics show the excellent path Jannik Sinner is following, proving indeed that he is the future of tennis. As for now, he seems to keep up with the big three’s numbers. Is it only a fluke? Only time will tell. Consistency will play a significant role in his climb to the top. Sinner is making Italy proud and already beating all of their records. Does he need anything else to prove that he can be the future nr.1?
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