Jannik Sinner is feeling 'confident' and enjoyed a period of sustained success against fellow ATP Finals contenders.
Before he sets foot on the big battleground at the Pala Alptitour in Turin where he is set to make his full debut as a qualifying entrant at the ATP Finals, Sinner stated that he has built up confidence by beating close rivals Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and Andrey Rublev in the past few weeks.
Sinner is a big believer in a player gaining confidence through winning tennis matches. Moreover, he expounds on the quality of opposition, adding that it builds up when you beat the best players. The Italian was one of the most productive players during the ATP's indoor swing.
He defeated Rublev and Medvedev in back-to-back matches to win the ATP 500 in Vienna last month. At the start of October, he was in sensational form too, despite facing health concerns in Beijing. He tallied wins over Alcaraz and Medvedev in successive matches to win the tournament.
"When you (feeling) confident, it's always a little bit easier to play, but you have to gain the confidence. It's not that you can buy it. It's a very important part. Obviously [it builds up] the more matches you win, but also against what kind of players you win is important. So (the Beijing wins) were very important."
Sinner spoke of the psychological impact a losing head-to-head record can have on a player, drawing his own example of the matchup against Medvedev. The 22-year-old had lost all six meetings to the Russian when they met in Beijing at the start of October.
Medvedev had won their two meetings earlier during the season in Rotterdam and Miami. Sinner, however, erased that lopsided head-ot-head record from his memory bank and described the situation to be different every time you play such type of an opponent.
"I would say it impacts you a little bit at some point, but in another way, in your mind, you know that every time is completely different when you step on court. Obviously, you can feel that.
"It may be certain game styles can match a little bit better than against other ones, but I think generally, you just have to be ready for the day. Don't think about the past, even if you're up in the head-to-head. You have to be really brave at every moment."
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