Jannik Sinner: Fans Don’t Like Fabio Fognini’s Comments About Djokovic

Former Italian tennis player Fabio Fognini has come under fire from Jannik Sinner’s fans following his comments made on the eve of the Wimbledon semifinal between the world No. 1 and Novak Djokovic. While in London for the grand finale of the season’s third Grand Slam, the former Ligurian tennis player told Sportklub that he hoped to see Djokovic win one last Grand Slam.

“Everyone loves Novak, but especially here. He’s won 106 matches at Wimbledon and has been the best player of our era. My greatest wish is that he has the opportunity to win another Grand Slam. I’m convinced that’s exactly why he keeps playing. If I know him well, that dream is what still motivates him. I know him very well. He’s a fantastic person, and it’s wonderful to see him still competing.”

Fognini’s comments did not sit well with several of Sinner’s fans, who voiced their opinions on social media: “Fognini never misses a chance to show how resentful he is,” “You’re not even worthy of tying Sinner’s shoes. You’ve just talked a lot and won Monte Carlo by some miracle,” “He’ll do anything to get people talking about him!” “Fognini is getting more and more likable… how sad,” “Fogna fogna, he’s so bitter,” “Fognini, a true Italian,” are some of the comments on Facebook and X.

The semifinal on Friday, July 10, at 2:30 p.m. Italian time on Center Court promises to be one of the most anticipated matches of the season. It will be the twelfth career meeting between Sinner and Djokovic, with the South Tyrolean leading the head-to-head series 6-5. At Wimbledon, however, the Serbian prevailed in their first two matches on the London grass, while Sinner got his revenge in the 2025 semifinals, winning decisively 6-3, 6-3, 6-4. Their most recent meeting this season came in the Australian Open semifinals, where Djokovic won in five sets, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

At 39, Nole has once again proven himself to be an extraordinary opponent, reaching his 15th semifinal at Wimbledon—his eighth in a row. There was no shortage of controversy during the match, with Djokovic protesting vehemently to the supervisor over the early closing of the roof, going so far as to say explicitly: “As for Jannik, I don’t care what happens in his matches. I’m talking about our match right now.” These words did not go unnoticed by Sinner’s fans, who were already buzzing with excitement for the semifinal.

For his part, Sinner heads into the match with extraordinary serving stats: at this Wimbledon, he has racked up a total of 97 aces in the matches he’s played, averaging 19.4 per match. When he hits his first serve, he wins over 80% of the points. Sinner didn’t hold back at the press conference: “I think that if I want to have a chance in the semifinals, I’ll have to raise my level a bit. I’m also pretty confident I can do it. I usually enjoy the big matches even more.”