MIAMI OPEN PRESENTED BY ITAú

March 31, 2024

Jannik Sinner

Press Conference

J. SINNER/G. Dimitrov

6-3, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: What is more important for you, your first title in Miami after two finals or being No. 1 in the rankings tomorrow?

JANNIK SINNER: No, No. 1?

THE MODERATOR: No. 2, sorry. (Laughter.)

JANNIK SINNER: Unforced error. (Laughter.)

No, for sure it means a lot to me, but more importantly, it was a great performance for me, especially in that semifinal and final, which for me it's more important.

Being No. 2, it's an amazing feeling. I never thought to come to this point. I come from a very normal family. My dad is still working, as my mom, too. For me, it's, you know, sport is one thing, and life is different.

I'm very happy to be in this position. I'm just enjoying every moment. These are special days winning a tournament. Doesn't matter what kind of tournament, it's a special day. It means a lot to me.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Congratulations. You seem to be very much on an even keel and strong mentally in a big game like that. You talked before about being nervous and so on in the past, but during games, have you always been, like, as focused and as controlled, or have you had to do a lot of work with sports psychologists or mental strength?

JANNIK SINNER: You go through, when you're young, you don't handle these situations as I handle them now. Maybe in the future I handle them even better, I don't know.

But my personality is very trying to stay calm. But in the other way, you have to don't sit back. You have to attack it. You know, if I lose the match by attacking and trying to take it, for me it's better than standing back and then seeing what's happening. That's also how I am.

So you have to stay focused, you know, mentally in every situation. On the courts, many things can happen. The momentum can switch so fast even if you're up a set and break. So you have to be very aware of this, and yeah, today was just a good day.

Q. Congratulations for your title. Daniil Medvedev said earlier that Carlos Alcaraz and you are the players who will win the most titles in the current circuit. What does it mean for you?

JANNIK SINNER: That means a lot, but in the other way, you still have to show. You know, I started the season really, really well. I never thought to start it like this. But it also means that I stay in this moment. You know, whatever happened happened already, and every tournament where you go, you have a new opportunity.

That's how I see it. I have a great team behind me who pushes me. We know what we have to improve. Now the clay season is coming, so usually I struggle there. So let's see what I can do this year. Then we see, no?

For sure, I am living a good life now. I mean, I made a lot of matches. I won three tournaments. So for me it means a lot, but in the other way, in three, four days, you have practice again and try to get better. So let's see.

Q. Congratulations. You just said you have struggled a bit on the clay. Do you have goals or expectations for yourself for what you'd like to do this season? I know you're enjoying this at the moment, but how do you often feel at this point in the year where you're moving off hard courts and on to the clay?

JANNIK SINNER: Yeah, first of all, you don't have so much time to adapt, because Monaco, I guess we start to practice Thursday the first time. So not even one week to get used to the clay.

There are always some strange results usually in Monaco, so let's see what's coming this year. For sure, the main goal is Roland Garros, yes, but trying to work slowly into this tournament and trying to play it in the best possible way. Before I have Rome, for me, especially is a really, really important tournament. You know, playing with the home crowd, it's always amazing.

And that's it. No, I'm very relaxed. Look, I have the feeling that I have learned many things from last year what I can do better. Physically I'm in a different shape than I was last year, which the clay is a lot physical. Then we'll see how it goes.

Q. Congratulations for the whole week and for today. You talked about your parents, that they're still hard-working, blue-collar people that are still working. They were not here, right, I don't think? Do you think with all the success you're having now that they might start to come, or do you think it's just going to maintain the way it is, that they just stay back there and work while you're winning these trophies?

JANNIK SINNER: They will continue to do their life, and then I do my life (smiling). For sure, my dad, you know, he had, like, in Indian Wells he came. There are, like, three, four tournaments where they could arrive. Monaco they might arrive. Rome and Vienna and end of year hopefully in Turin if I play.

And that's it. They won't travel much, at least until now. I know them, so I also have grandma and grandpa, which they have a certain age now which they want to stay close to. We have the family at that home. They live in a beautiful place, so they have a good life there.

For sure I miss personally a little bit the time with my parents, because I left home when I was 13, 14. So I haven't had so much time with them. Hopefully I can make this up in the future, but, I mean, for me it's more important if they are happy. I know I'm happy. If I'm happy, they're happy. It's all good.

Q. Congratulations on an incredible victory. Darren Cahill was just in here and talked about how receptive you are to coaching, how hard you work, what a great personality you have. We interviewed Daniil Medvedev who said you had improved your serve so much. What do you think you have improved on so much to have these incredible results, and what are you working on towards the future to improve with your great team?

JANNIK SINNER: I think the biggest change I have had is physical. We worked a lot physical in the gym, and this helps you also on the court when, in your mind, you know that you can play for hours and hours and then you can maintain a certain level.

On the court, for sure, the serve I have improved, which helps you a lot, especially when you have long rallies and then a point after, you make point with the serve helps you a lot.

I think, like, the tactical side, trying to understand how to play against certain players helps me a lot. But to reach this, you also need to improve certain shots to do this.

I think Darren and Simone they are doing an amazing job with me. They understand what we have to improve. Darren prepares me really, really good in the mental part, trying to be ready, because, you know, certain things could happen on court, and I just try to be ready for this moment.

The combination of Simone and Darren is just really, really good.

Q. Last year in August in Toronto you won your first Masters 1000. Looking back in hindsight, can you pinpoint if you unlocked anything after winning that big match? Because obviously it seems like you finished the year very well, and now you have the best start of a year of your career. So can you pinpoint if you unlocked something or learned something after that first win?

JANNIK SINNER: For sure winning my first Masters event was important for me, because I made great results in Masters events. Last year I made semis in Indian Wells, final here, semis in Monaco. I was there. I just never could win the title.

So for me mentally was really important, trying to win at least one, because it was a very special feeling for me in Toronto.

But then after, when you win, you realize that it's really special, like this, yes, but it's a moment. You live this moment, and then you're happy and then you fly to Cincinnati and the day after you play again.

So there is not so much time to enjoy this. That's what I feel like that I have improved a lot. You know, after Australia, I live these moments, three or four days, and then after, I get back to work. It was the same in Rotterdam and it's the same here, because you don't have to time to, yeah, to enjoy, you know.

So this is also how I am, because maybe there are players who enjoy a little bit for longer. Me, I know that I don't have so much time to prepare for Monaco, so this is now obviously the next goal, trying to get confident with the clay.

Q. The year is one-quarter through. The record that you have had in these first three months has been pretty amazing. On January the 1st of this year, what did you expect yourself to achieve, and what did you want to achieve?

JANNIK SINNER: I was not expecting this, for sure. I would lie. But I felt prepared to do well this year, because I had a great offseason, I had a great end of last year. You know, beating Novak twice for me was, you know, important, like an important result.

You know, I had like really consistent weeks, you know, Beijing and Vienna, and end-of-year Finals and Davis Cup. For me I felt ready to make some great results.

Now that I have these stats, maybe also not. But, you know, for me what was important because on every tournament I went I felt like that I have a good solution to play good there. On hard court, I love to play on hard courts, which gives me this extra confidence. Now on clay is a little bit different. I feel, at least in the past years I haven't felt that good on the courts. It's gonna be interesting week also in Madrid, because Madrid is completely different than all the rest.

So I'm just trying to understand what works best for me. And that's it.