Jannik Sinner could become just the second player after Roger Federer to achieve an incredible record since tennis went professional in 1968.
Sinner's breakthrough season has been so impressive that it can be compared to Federer's 2005 season. The Swiss maestro dominated the sport from 2004 to 2007, winning 11 of the 16 Grand Slams during that period.
Four of the five Grand Slams he failed to win during that period came at the French Open. Nadal, who had to overcome hostility from pro-Federer crowds at the start of their rivalry, beat him at Roland-Garros from 2005 to 2008.
Federer won Wimbledon and the US Open and collected 11 titles overall in 2005, including the Indian Wells Open, Miami Open, and the Cincinnati Open. He was defeated at the Australian Open by Marat Safin and the French Open by Nadal.
His only other defeats were a five-set loss to David Nalbandian in the final of the ATP Finals (then called the Tennis Masters Cup) and a loss to Richard Gasquet, who will retire at next year's French Open, at the Monte Carlo Masters.
Federer ended the season with an 81-5 win/loss record, and none of his losses were in straight sets. The loss to Nadal at the French Open was in four sets, and the other three defeats went to a deciding set.
Sinner has one more singles match to play at the Davis Cup after leading Team Italy to the final during victories against Argentina and Australia. The Italians start the final as favorites against the Netherlands.
After ending 2023 by finishing as the runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the ATP Finals and winning the Davis Cup with his country, Sinner began 2024 by securing a maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open by beating Daniil Medvedev in five sets.
Further successes, including a title at the Miami Open, saw Sinner overtake Djokovic at No. 1 in the rankings after the French Open. He has retained that position since after continuing to dominate on hard courts in the last few months of the season.
Sinner won the Cincinnati Open before claiming a second Grand Slam title after beating Taylor Fritz in straight sets at the US Open. He continued to flourish by triumphing again at the Shanghai Masters.
That achievement in Shanghai made him the fastest player to guarantee the No. 1 ranking since Djokovic in 2015. Afterward, he won the ATP Finals on home soil in Turin, his eighth title of 2024.
Sinner has only lost six matches this season. Three came against Carlos Alcaraz, and the others were against Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, and Daniil Medvedev. All of those losses went to a deciding set.
That means Sinner is just one Davis Cup singles victory away from going the entire season without losing a singles match in straight sets. He would be just the second man since 1968 and the first since Federer in 2005 to achieve this.
Sinner's consistency will be demonstrated perfectly if he reaches that record. The two-time Grand Slam champion has not lost any match heavily because of how good he is.
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