'I have sparred with Roger Federer and...', says young ATP star

It was one of the most important games of his career and Roberto Bautista Agut played it as he should, competing in a semifinal at a crazy and dominant pace for about a set and a half. To tell the truth, he also played very well in the rest of the game, in the third set he was ahead of a break but he had to give up when Jannik Sinner, his executioner both in Dubai and here at the Miami Open, returned to the game. He was fresh from the great victory over Medvedev and the Spaniard seemed very excited before the match, but in the end Bautista was defeated for the second match out of two previous ones. At the end of the meeting Roberto Bautista appeared disappointed but at the same time he was very honest and made great compliments to his opponent, increasingly on the launching pad in a world perspective. By beating Roberto Bautista Agut in the semifinals of the Miami Open on Friday, Jannik Sinner became the youngest Masters finalist since Novak Djokovic in 2007. Sinner is also only the third teenager ever to reach the men's final in Miami - after Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andre Agassi. Rising Italian tennis star Jannik Sinner has revealed his admiration for the ‘Big Four’, saying that he grew up watching Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray in action.

Jannik Sinner on the Big 3

"Joining (the list), it feels great obviously," Jannik Sinner said. "But as I always say, I'm 19 and you know, the road to have this big name is long, it's not going to happen in one tournament in one week. It's a long process to (reach) there. I think it's nice to play the final in Miami but it doesn't mean anything, (it doesn't mean) that you are going to win all the tournaments." Asked who his biggest influencers in the game were during a post-match interview, the current World Number 31 said, “Obviously, the Big Three (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic)…it was the Big Four, with Andy as well.” He revealed that he had long nestled and nurtured a dream to someday play the elite of contemporary men’s tennis. Sinner further stressed on the need to keep working on his game, and claimed that neither he nor his team is taking anything for granted. "The road is long, I know it and my team knows that," the 19-year-old went on. "Obviously it can be a great week for me, it already is a great week for me. But the work has to go on obviously. As I said, it's nice but it doesn't mean anything."

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/31OSsGF