Jannik Sinner under attack, defeatists rage on

Almost a week has passed since Jannik Sinner’s very painful defeat against Francisco Cerúndolo at Roland Garros, and the debate about the South Tyrolean’s ‘short-circuit’ continues to hold sway. The San Candido outfielder suffered huge physical problems in the third set and then lost the challenge after the first two partials won with ease.

At the microphones of Radio1 Sport, coach Vincenzo Santopadre expressed his theory: “Jannik Sinner only jammed momentarily but we in Paris have proof of how our tennis is as alive as ever. It is the essence of tennis. It’s a bit like Arnaldi’s match against Tiafoe: at one point it was lost, instead…”.

The coach’s ruling did not convince everyone, however, and on social media many defeatists criticized his words: “But what jamming, it’s clear that there is a much deeper problem,” Giacomo commented on X, who was echoed by Umberto: “I don’t understand those who try to minimize Sinner’s problems, we should get to the bottom of it because it’s not the first time.”

Through his column in Corriere della Sera Massimo Gramellini made some remarks about Sinner: “Like the heroes of epic and tragedy, Jannik Sinner is a living paradox: power and precariousness coexist in him. If he were an F1 bolide, we would say that he has been given an engine of disproportionate displacement compared to the chassis.”

“He consumes more than the others and that is perhaps why he suddenly runs out of gas every now and then. But who is a hero? A creature without weaknesses? No, that is a god. The hero is by nature imperfect. He has a wound inside him that never heals and can bleed suddenly,” wrote Gramellini.