US OPEN

August 29, 2024

Jannik Sinner

Press Conference

J. SINNER/A. Michelsen

6-4, 6-0, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Moving on to the third round. Convincing win. A little over an hour and a half. Give us your thoughts on your play from round 1 to round 2.

JANNIK SINNER: Yeah, it was a little, real improvement, for sure. I'm looking to get better now in the next days.

I had small practice session after the match, so, you know, trying to keep going, trying to understand what works here best on these courts. Yeah, let's see what I can do in the next round.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. I was wondering if you were planning on hiring a new full-time physio and trainer, new staff, and was it difficult to continue working with your old staff for a few months even after they made the mistake with the cream?

JANNIK SINNER: Yeah, of course, it was a strange moment, no? Obviously I don't want to talk about this at the moment. We are trying to understand who would be the best option now. Not easy obviously to find now in the middle of the season, you know, the physical trainer and the physio.

We try our best to find the best people, and then we see. After US Open hopefully I have something. Yeah, so let's see.

Q. I don't know if you have seen, but Nick Kyrgios has been doing some on-court interviews this week. He's had some inflammatory things to say about you on social media. I just wondered if you thought about how you might feel being interviewed by him on the Arthur Ashe Stadium.

JANNIK SINNER: I don't know. I don't want to respond on what he said. Everyone is free to say everything, so it's okay. If that is the case, let's see. It's going to be different, for sure, but I don't know. I don't know what to say.

Maybe I say something now, and then the reaction is going to be something else because you live in this moment. But, no, I'm always quite relaxed. I'm someone who forgets quite fast something. As I said, everyone is quite free to say everything, so it is what it is, yeah.

Q. Jannik, even before all of this, what was your experience with online abuse and hateful messages, and how did you deal with it? A couple of players this week have talked about the experiences that they've had.

JANNIK SINNER: Yeah, there's always going to be. There is socially something good, and there is also the dark side, no? This is one of them.

Everyone reacts in a different way. I think there is no secrets behind. If I lose today, obviously some messages are coming in, but I try to be as less as possible on socials also because of that. Because it's like when you live something positive and you want to say socials and then you see compliments and then when you lose, you see something a bit more negative, but that's how everything works, no?

Just take it easy, you know. We always try to do our best. Sometimes we win; sometimes we lose. I think trying to give our best, we won already regardless of the result.

As I said, there are always going to be some people who are going to talk in a negative way, but that's also why you have the family, you have the close people who know you as a person, and just stick with them because they give you the real values, so it's good.

Q. Does that get you to stay off social media because sometimes things cross the line?

JANNIK SINNER: Yeah. Look, I'm not so much on socials, especially in the last period. I try to don't look so much about this. I know that there are some negative messages, but it's something you have to be careful. Especially when you are younger because you care a lot about your reputation, but then at the end of the day it's quite -- that's why you have the close ones and then they know you as a person and as an athlete.

My advice is always to stick with them because they are very honest with you. Yeah, that's it.

Q. You're No. 1 in the world. You're still a very young man. Many before all this occurred felt that you had been really growing as a person and saying interesting things. My question is: What have you learned from this, and how do you think you're growing from all that's occurred?

JANNIK SINNER: As I said, it helps me to see who my friends are and who are not my friends. This yes, but you know, this is all part of a growing experience, no?

I wish nobody has this experience to grow because this is a different way of experience, but you also realize that there is also a life outside of tennis, which are much more important than that what we do because our daily routine is to hit tennis balls and go in the gym.

Then, you know, you see that some people, they are sick. There are different things what come in my mind. I said, okay, tennis is big for me because it showed me what I am as a person and how important the sport is, but in the other way there is a life outside of tennis, which is even more important. Trying to be healthy, surround yourself with good people. That for me, it is more important, no?

Then on the tennis court obviously I try to do my best. I try to fight and let the spectators enjoy also the show.

For me I believe that I have grown also as a person this period regardless of how everything is going, which hopefully can help me in the future.

Q. Have there been one or two people that have been most helpful for you?

JANNIK SINNER: Yeah, my close ones. My daily ones who I text with, who I talk with. This for me has been the most important people in this moment, no?

But also most likely these are people who know you already for long time or these are people who I opened myself trying to be close with them. Yeah, it's very important people.

Q. During the first set we have heard more than 15 planes above you. Is it something that bother you, or it's like normal life on Arthur Ashe?

JANNIK SINNER: Here it's a bit more noisy. I didn't even realize so much the planes. You hear a bit of noise, but it's part of here. So I think we all players know that, so we accept it quite well.