When Jannik Sinner plays in Rome and where to see him: his opponent swaggering

This is it: the debut of Jannik Sinner, the most anticipated man at the Internazionali d’Italia in Rome, is coming up. At the Foro Italico, the Azzurro, fresh off five consecutive Masters 1000 wins and on the hunt for an incredible sixth victory, will make his debut against Austrian Sebastian Ofner.

Sinner, who makes his debut directly in the second round, will face the world number 82 this Saturday, May 9, at a time that has yet to be determined. The two have never faced each other on the ATP circuit, while Ofner was the South Tyrolean’s last opponent in Challengers before his move to the higher circuit: in Ortisei in 2019, the future San Candido champion won in two sets in the final.

Now the two meet seven years apart, and Ofner showed some swagger for the occasion: “It will be a very difficult match, he has only lost two matches this year. I will try to play my tennis, give my best and see what happens. If I have the chance I will try something different, otherwise I will try to play my tennis anyway. I have to think I can beat him, otherwise I couldn’t play. one of the keys may be my serve. Stay in the match and try to take advantage of the opportunities I will have.”

The match will be broadcast on Sky Sports channels and streamed on SkyGo, NOW Tv and Tennis Tv platforms. The challenge against Ofner comes amid an unprecedented record hunt. Sinner currently boasts 28 consecutive Masters 1000 victories: with four wins at the Foro Italico he would surpass Novak Djokovic’s all-time record, which stands at 31.

Even Djokovic, who was present in Rome, said he was certain that Sinner would be able to match his record of winning all nine Masters 1000s in his career: “He’s going to do it for sure, probably this year as well. He is very strong, really impressive.”