The superb rise of Jannik Sinner sparked a lot of interest in tennis in his native Italy, with the Italian Open tournament director claiming his matches are being followed like football matches.
The Italians love their football, and comparing something to football is high praise. Sinner is the best Italian tennis player right now and on his way to becoming the best ever, though we'll wait a few more years before making that statement official.
His rise in the past 12 months has been spectacular, and it sparked a lot of interest in the sport and his career in his native country. According to former ATP player and Italian Open tournament director, Paolo Lorenzi, his matches are being followed like football matches, and that's quite high praise.
"In the audience, a Jannik Sinner match is like a football match in Italy and this one has almost never happened in the last 30 years. When Sinner is playing you have the livescore in every news site, online, everyone is talking about Sinner."
Italian tennis has been on the rise in recent years. They currently have nine players ranked inside the Top 100. Six of them are 23 and younger, so the future certainly looks bright for the country. Still, it's Sinner, who has been getting all of the attention lately.
"If you, I don't know, walk in the street they are talking: why is Sinner not number one, how many points he needs. Now everyone is talking about tennis. So I think that can bring a lot more in the tennis in Italy."
Unfortunately, he had to abandon his plans to play in Rome this year after experiencing hip problems last week in Madrid. As much as he loves to play in Rome, the Roland Garros is coming up, and after that also the Olympics, where he will represent his country.