Jannik Sinner was defeated in the early hours of this Tuesday through Wednesday Ben Shelton through 7-6(4) and 6-1 in round of 16 of the Indian Wells Masters 1000. This was to seal a new victory and, incidentally, remain just one victory away from equaling their semifinals in last year’s tournament.
The Italian knows how to suffer in the first set, where he gave his serve when he was 5-4 and served to close the first set, to later tie the tie-break and start to recover the good sensations of the game that he was showing throughout the season. He showed them in a big way in the second set, with an unassailable 6-1 that gave him another victory.
They are eighteen in a row since leading Italy to the title Davis cup at the end of last year. Then, after losing the finals of the ATP Finals against Novak Djokovic, Sinner became a hero for his country after leading his victories over Tallon Griekspoor in the quarterfinals, Djokovic himself in the semifinals and Alex de Miñaur in the final conquest of historic salad bowl.
It’s not the first time that a decisive role in a Davis Cup has taken a toll on a tennis player’s confidence and game. This is what happened to Sinner, because after those three wins it was them fifteen he united in a meteoric start to 2024: seven at the Australian Open (Botic van de Zandschulp, Jesper de Jong, Sebastián Báez, Karen Khachanov, Andrey Rublev, Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev), five at Rotterdam (Van de Zandschulp, Gaël Monfils, Milos Raonic, Tallon Griekspoor and Alex de Miñaur) and the three he has accumulated in Indian Wells (Thanasi Kokkinakis, Jan-Lennard Struff and Ben Shelton).
In his fifteen games this year, The sinner barely gave four sets. The first came against Djokovic in the Australian semifinals; the next two, in the heroic comeback he staged against Medvedev in the final from doubles 6-3 down. Monfils in Rotterdam also got a set from him.
But none of them prevented Sinner from taking another step in the importance of his incredible streak: with the victory added in the early hours of Wednesday against Shelton, the Italian reached those. fifteen consecutive wins at the beginning of the season to be the fifth player in ATP history (since 1990) to achieve similar numbers. Of course, some of the notable members of the list have repeated them on more than one occasion.
The absolute king of the start of the season continues Novak Djokovicto sign forty-one winning streak in 2011 until Roger Federer managed to defeat him in the semifinals of Roland Garros. Not happy with that information, Djokovic won over others twenty-six consecutive starting games in 2020the atypical year of the pandemic, before his hit on the line judge in the US Open round of 16 match against Pablo Carreño broke his streak.
After the Serbian came out Rafael Nadalwith the twenty wins in a row at his campaign premiere 2022. He won Melbourne, the Australian Open and Acapulco before, reduced, he was overtaken by the affected Taylor Fritz in a strange final in Indian Wells.
They close top5 streaks with seventeen Pete Sampras in 1997, Novak Djokovic in 2013 and Roger Federer in 2018. Federer also added sixteen in 2006, where he was defeated by Rafa Nadal in the Dubai final. Then, along fifteen, sinners equal to the achievements of Andre Agassi in 1995 and by Novak Djokovic last year.
Therefore, if these are names and not drawings, The sinner climbed into the top5 of players who achieved similar numbers. Djokovic, Nadal, Sampras and Federer they make up the top4, meanwhile the Italian is already tied with Agassi in the fifth historical position. Seventeen victories of Sampras and the Swiss mean for him, if there are no withdrawals involved, to reach the final of Indian Wells, with Jiri Lehecka as his first rival and, if he overcomes that challenge, in a duel against the winner of Carlos Alcaraz-Alexander Zverev.
Jannik Sinner’s streak of best ATP seasons (since 1990) begins
Best winning streak at the beginning of the season
1. Novak Djokovic 41 (2011)
2. Novak Djokovic 26 (2020)
3. Rafa Nadal 20 (2022)
4. Pete Sampras 17 (1997)
4. Novak Djokovic 17 (2013)
4. Roger Federer 17 (2018)
7. Roger Federer 16 (2006)
8. Andre Agassi 15 (1995)
8. Novak Djokovic 15 (2023)
8. Jannik Sinner 15 (2024)
The
Players with the best winning streak at the beginning of the season (best streak)
1. Novak Djokovic 41 (2011)
2. Rafa Nadal 20 (2022)
3. Pete Sampras 17 (1997)
4. Roger Federer 17 (2018)
5. Andre Agassi 15 (1995)
5. Jannik Sinner 15 (2024)
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
