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05/17 14:22 CDT Sinner becomes 1st Italian man to win Italian Open in 50 years
and matches Djokovic's Masters sweep
Sinner becomes 1st Italian man to win Italian Open in 50 years and matches
Djokovic's Masters sweep
By ANDREW DAMPF
AP Sports Writer
ROME (AP) --- Italian tennis fans had waited for this moment for a half century.
For Jannik Sinner, though, it wasn't just about becoming the first Italian man
to win the Italian Open since Adriano Panatta 50 years ago.
The top-ranked Sinner's 6-4, 6-4 victory over Casper Ruud in Sunday's final on
the red clay of the Foro Italico also made him only the second man after Novak
Djokovic to win all nine Masters 1000 events --- the biggest tournaments
outside the Grand Slams.
"There's no better place to complete this set," Sinner said. "For an Italian,
it's one of the most special places we play tennis in. To win at least once in
my career means a lot to me."
Djokovic completed the career set in 2018 in Cincinnati at age 31 --- and then
went on to win each event at least twice. Sinner is 24, and with his only real
rival, Carlos Alcaraz, currently sidelined due to a right wrist injury,
seemingly nobody can beat him.
"Welcome to the exclusive club, Jannik," Djokovic wrote on Instagram.
Sinner extended his winning streak to 29 matches. He hasn't lost since getting
beat by Jakub Mensik in the Qatar Open quarterfinals on Feb. 19. And he's now
17-0 on clay this year entering the French Open, which starts next Sunday.
Sinner celebrated calmly as usual, revealing a wide smile when he landed an
inside-out forehand on the line on his first championship point, then held his
hands over his head in apparent relief. Then he waved to the crowd, which
included 1976 champion Panatta sitting in the front row.
"Adriano, after 50 years we've won back a very important trophy," Sinner told
the 75-year-old Panatta, who participated in the trophy ceremony.
Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam that Sinner hasn't won: He has two
Australian Open titles and has won Wimbledon and the U.S. Open once each.
Soccer-style atmosphere Sinner's triumph --- with Italy President Sergio Mattarella in attendance --- came after he lost last year's final in Rome to Alcaraz in his first tournament back after a three-month doping ban. That defeat came a day after Jasmime Paolini in 2025 became the first Italian woman to win the Rome singles title in 40 years --- when she also claimed the doubles trophy with partner Sara Errani. With many of Sinner's fans dressed in orange --- his theme color, which matches his curly hair --- the capacity crowd of 10,500 on Campo Centrale created a soccer-style atmosphere with chanting and loud cheers for the player who has become far and away Italy's most popular athlete. After several key points, the crowd erupted into a cheer of "Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole; Sin-ner, Sin-ner." Then there was more chanting during the trophy presentation. Angelo Binaghi, the president of the Italian tennis federation, suggested that even if there was a 25,000-seat center court in Rome --- bigger than the U.S. Open's Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world's largest tennis arena --- it would have been full.
No signs of fatigue Sinner overcame exhaustion to beat Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals in a rain-delayed match that required two days to finish. But there were no signs of fatigue against the 25th-ranked Ruud, who has been one of the circuit's top clay-court players for years. Ruud reached two finals at Roland Garros, losing to Rafael Nadal in 2022 and Novak Djokovic in 2023. But the Norwegian wasted an early break and a 2-0 advantage at the start of the first set against Sinner, who quickly broke back and then broke again toward the end of the set with the help of three key drop shots --- two of which were so well-placed that Ruud didn't even run for them. A big backhand winner up the line gave Sinner another break in the opening game of the second set. Sinner improved to 5-0 in his career against Ruud. "What you're doing this year it's hard to describe in words," Ruud told Sinner during the trophy ceremony. "It's really an honor to watch you play. ... Congratulations for making history."
Day to remember for Italy It was an extra special day for the host nation after Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori became the first Italian duo to win the men's doubles title in Rome since 1960. Bolelli and Vavassori beat Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 7-6 (8), 6-7 (3), 10-3. For both the singles and doubles finals, there was also a packed crowd watching on a jumbo screen on the statue-lined Pietrangeli court next to Campo Centrale. Elina Svitolina beat Coco Gauff in the women's singles title match on Saturday. ___ AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Soccer-style atmosphere Sinner's triumph --- with Italy President Sergio Mattarella in attendance --- came after he lost last year's final in Rome to Alcaraz in his first tournament back after a three-month doping ban. That defeat came a day after Jasmime Paolini in 2025 became the first Italian woman to win the Rome singles title in 40 years --- when she also claimed the doubles trophy with partner Sara Errani. With many of Sinner's fans dressed in orange --- his theme color, which matches his curly hair --- the capacity crowd of 10,500 on Campo Centrale created a soccer-style atmosphere with chanting and loud cheers for the player who has become far and away Italy's most popular athlete. After several key points, the crowd erupted into a cheer of "Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole; Sin-ner, Sin-ner." Then there was more chanting during the trophy presentation. Angelo Binaghi, the president of the Italian tennis federation, suggested that even if there was a 25,000-seat center court in Rome --- bigger than the U.S. Open's Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world's largest tennis arena --- it would have been full.
No signs of fatigue Sinner overcame exhaustion to beat Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals in a rain-delayed match that required two days to finish. But there were no signs of fatigue against the 25th-ranked Ruud, who has been one of the circuit's top clay-court players for years. Ruud reached two finals at Roland Garros, losing to Rafael Nadal in 2022 and Novak Djokovic in 2023. But the Norwegian wasted an early break and a 2-0 advantage at the start of the first set against Sinner, who quickly broke back and then broke again toward the end of the set with the help of three key drop shots --- two of which were so well-placed that Ruud didn't even run for them. A big backhand winner up the line gave Sinner another break in the opening game of the second set. Sinner improved to 5-0 in his career against Ruud. "What you're doing this year it's hard to describe in words," Ruud told Sinner during the trophy ceremony. "It's really an honor to watch you play. ... Congratulations for making history."
Day to remember for Italy It was an extra special day for the host nation after Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori became the first Italian duo to win the men's doubles title in Rome since 1960. Bolelli and Vavassori beat Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 7-6 (8), 6-7 (3), 10-3. For both the singles and doubles finals, there was also a packed crowd watching on a jumbo screen on the statue-lined Pietrangeli court next to Campo Centrale. Elina Svitolina beat Coco Gauff in the women's singles title match on Saturday. ___ AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
