French Open 2024: Italian Force in Full Display as Jannik Sinner’s Massive World No.1 Triumph Receives Interesting Reaction From Jasmine Paolini

Jannik Sinner is soon going to etch his name in the history of tennis. With an astounding journey from the ITF Futures and Challenger Tour to the top of men’s tennis, the Italian is going to claim the coveted world number-one ranking after the French Open. This will also make him the first Italian player to achieve this feat ever! Naturally, the tennis world is in a frenzy right now! However, not only his fans but even his fellow compatriot, Jasmine Paolini, is also celebrating this huge achievement.

Jasmine Paolini, the Italian tennis pro, took to her Instagram to acknowledge Jannik Sinner’s hard-fought accomplishment in tennis through a post. Captioned as “🤯🎩👏,” Paolini, who herself is making records in Paris by qualifying for the Grand Slam quarterfinals for the first time in her career, has shown her support for the 22-year-old player.

The French Open of this season is witnessing the rise of the remarkable talents of both the Italian players, Paolini and Sinner. The 28-year-old WTA player already holds the position of the No. 1 female tennis player from Italy. In addition to that, she is also producing exceptional performances on-court this season in Paris. 

After all, the former No. 12 player has surpassed all four rounds at Roland Garros with grace to qualify for a quarterfinal match against Elena Rybakina, scheduled today. And according to her, “We athletes are a bit snubbed in Italy… it’s a cultural issue, profound and complex. It will still take a long time to resolve it… In any case, the wave of popularity that was brought by Sinner did us girls some good too.”  As pointed out by Paolini, the Italian culture is indeed famous more for art, history, and cuisine and comparatively less for sports. However, when it comes to sports, motor sports, cycling, and soccer often receive the spotlight, overshadowing other sports like tennis.

Although there have been prominent tennis athletes in the past (like Adriano Panatta, Flavia Penetta) who created history in this sport, the lack of a role model is still felt now and then. Therefore, Sinner’s presence at the top of this sport will help unite the nation and increase the popularity of tennis in Italy. This will automatically favor the women’s tennis section too.

And Paolini is also focusing on doing the same, as she is now all ready to beat world No. 4 and reach her first-ever semifinal appearance in the French Open! While she has her eyes set on winning her first grand slam, the reigning Australian Open champion is all ready to be at the top spot for the first time! 

After Novak Djokovic withdrew from the French Open due to his knee injury, Jannik Sinner, who remained at No. 2 for a while, will now overthrow the Serbian to reach No. 1. Therefore, it is indeed a celebration for Italy and Paolini’s post further emphasizes the same. Jannik Sinner also conveyed his thoughts on the subject and shed light on how it is a big achievement for Italy.

Jannik Sinner speaks on how being at No. 1 will be “great for Italy”

While Jannik Sinner was busy defeating Grigor Dimitrov in his quarterfinal match (2-6, 4-6, 6-7), little did he know that he was soon going claim another achievement in tennis. Sinner, who helped Italy attain the Davis Cup in 2023, is therefore now on the moon after achieving this great feat, not only for himself but for the country as well.

“It means a lot, but I think it’s great for Italy. We’re a great country with great coaches and players and we can see this now how this moment is. I’m happy to be part of this Italian movement. People, they start to play tennis now more and more, which is great to see. I think that’s the most important,” he said after his latest match.

However, Jannik Sinner’s current goal is tackling his next opponent, Carlos Alcaraz, in the semifinals. Armed with the support of his fans, and players like Paolini, the tennis world now waits to see more of his talent on-court.