Rafael Nadal’s Legacy Carried Forward by Jannik Sinner as He Possesses Spaniard’s Unique Trait

Tennis players view their racket as their most important tool when playing the game. Every player has a different set of feelings and habits when it comes to their relationship with their racket. As an example, Novak Djokovic sometimes uses shattering his rackets as a physical outlet for his frustrations. Rafael Nadal, on the other hand, prefers to keep his cool under pressure and sees his racket as a reliable ally.

Jannik Sinner, the Australian Open champion in 2024, emulates Rafael Nadal by adopting a similar mindset and realizing the value of continuing to be resilient and in charge. Recently, the Italian tennis player opened up about his connection with his tennis racket.

“The racket is the most important thing” Jannik Sinner has

The 22-year-old Italian player shared his thoughts in an interview with Vanity Fans on whether he believes in breaking rackets or not. Being a calm personality, just like Rafael Nadal, his ideology of caring about his racket is totally different, as he somewhere does not believe in disrespecting the racket.

He said, “Yes, but many years have passed. The racket is the most important thing we have.” While he clearly stated that there was a time when he had broken his racket, he didn’t do that anymore as he believed that it was the most important thing to a tennis player.

Apart from Sinner, the 22-time Grand Slam champion, a lot of players, including Casper Ruud, tried to keep their distances from venting their frustration out on the racket. The Norwegian tennis player is also the one who follows Rafa’s example of not breaking a racket on the court.

Also read: ‘I Have Red Hair..’ – Despite Raging Fame, Jannik Sinner Makes Stance Clear With a Cheeky Take On His Popularity Among Fans

On the other hand, this is not the first time he has talked about his racket attributes. A few years back, he clearly stated that he stopped breaking rackets, sharing a break connection with his on-court personality.

When Sinner “felt so cross” for “having broken the racket” 

Back in 2021, in an interview with Marca, he talked in detail about how he had broken a racket twice but at the same time suffered a lot thinking about it. Along with that, he also recalled the time when he broke the racket in Bonfiglio, during an under-18 tournament.

He added, “I lost in the quarter-finals after having a nightmare of a match and I broke my racket. Leaving the court, I felt so cross with myself for having broken the racket, much more [than the fact] that I’d lost. I realized that this type of attitude doesn’t go with my personality.”

Further, he revealed that he had a realization that this type of attitude doesn’t go with his personality, and because of this, he has stopped breaking rackets.

Nevertheless, what are your thoughts on Sinner’s ideology behind not breaking rackets? Do let us know in the comment section below.

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