Why Italy doesn’t go nuts over Jannik Sinner | Tennis News

When compared to his country’s underwhelming tennis legacy, Jannik Sinner is a clear over-achiever. But somehow, Italy doesn’t extend him the unanimous and unconditional love that he so deserves.Sinner is the World No.1 and that’s an unprecedented high for a country whose greatest-ever male player for long was the 70s star Adriano Panatta, the winner of just one Grand Slam title. At 23, Sinner is already the Australian Open champion and is billed to win many more Slams. The ongoing US Open could see him win his second. When Sinner has Carlos Alcaraz across the court, memories of the Nadal-Federer era come rushing back. So why can’t the passionately sporty European nation treat him like the Azzurri? The answer is simple – Because for many, he isn’t a true blue Italian.
For one he has a German name. It doesn’t have the sing-song stretch of characters found in Godfather movies. His Italian too isn’t pure, it is accented. His hands don’t flay when he talks. He is studious on court, like the Germans. Sinner hails from South Tyrol, part of Italy’s Trentino-Alto Adige region where 70 per cent of the residents speak German. Sharing international borders with Austria, Sinner’s home town has a past. After being part of Austrian-Hungarian empire for a century, the province merged with the Kingdom of Italy in 1918. Their nationality might have been changed but the new Italians continued to follow their age-old traditions and culture.
Jannik Sinner of Italy in action against Jack Draper of Great Britain on day twelve of the U.S. Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images
The region was in the thick of things during World Wars. In 1939, Hitler and Mussolini would sit to decide the fate of these in-betweeners. But the uncertainty couldn’t wipe out the Germanness of this Italian region. When peace prevailed, the northern Trentino-Alto Adige fought for its autonomy and got it.
The residents have an option of choosing German over Italian at school. Most cities and villages have two names – one German, the other Italian. Sinner’s village is Innichen for the German-speaking population and San Candido for Italian speakers.
The autonomous Trentino-Alto Adige has its own laws. The region is allowed to collect and keep its tax money. Unlike other Italian provinces, Rome has no control over these collections . The breath-taking sights ensure a year-long gush of tours and cash flow. Sinner grew up in this scenic locale that is part of the richest Italian province. South Tyrol remains the envy of other provinces.
And so when a sporting hero with a German sounding name emerged from a not-too-Italian region, the usual frenzy was missing. Sinner too didn’t help his cause missing two Olympics and one Davis Cup engagement. At times even the optics were not good. When he played a tennis tournament in Austria, the local organisers, to give the event a boost, formed cheering squads for the stars. Those backing Sinner held posters with messages written in German. Already suspicious about those from the affluent autonomous region, it didn’t go down well with some Italians.
Jannik Sinner of Italy in action against Jack Draper of Great Britain on day twelve of the U.S. Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images
That also explains a popular Reddit query involving Sinner. Do Italians love Sinner the same way they would love Matteo Berrettini (Italian player born in Rome) if he was #1? Though, most respondents say they do but there are some answers that point to the tiny fire that is responsible for the unproportional smoke.
* “I’d say 90 per cent of people love him … few others who have “anti-German” sentiment consider him Austrian.”
* “Some of my friends joked that after the downfall of Thiem, it’s nice to have another Austrian as No.1 again.”
* “Before Sinner was this good and Berrettini was No.4 … the media, which is mostly based in Rome, only talked and cared about Berrettini because the guy is from Rome and Sinner has a strong accent and was seen less than Berrettini
* Isn’t it sort of like Murray … British if he wins, Scot if he loses.
On the podcast titled ‘The Jannik Sinner Show’, Italian tennis enthusiasts Miki Fossati and Leonardo Poggi discuss how Sinner is seen as Italian tennis’s UFO. They offer a local perspective to the Sinner Story and the role Trentino-Alto Adige has played in it. They also do a bit of myth-busting. Since the time he hit international headlines, there has been talk about his skiing career as a junior and how the time he spent on the snowy slopes improved his footwork. The ATP website calls him a sensational skier. The praise is too high, say the podcasters for Italy has way too many talented skiers and Sinner wasn’t among them. The answer is elsewhere.
Italy’s Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning his semi final match against Britain’s Jack Draper. (Reuters)
Sinner’s home-town is different from the picture postcard Italy backdrop. Its harsh winters and snow acts as an enemy for an outdoor sport like tennis. But the wealthy province came up with an expensive solution – they took tennis indoors. This makes Sinner an outlier. In a country known for its clay-courters, he is a highly-skilled hard-courter.
The podcasters say that they do bump into the Italians who feel Sinner is more German or Austrian. This is a tragedy born out of the toxic mix of geo-politics and sports. It is unfortunate that there are those Italians who marvel at his tennis but scoff at his name, accent and ancestry. Sinner has done the impossible – beaten his sport’s certified GOAT Novak Djokovic in his last two meetings. But those with mixed-up minds can’t look beyond the hory of the conflicted region where he grew up.
But there is hope in the next generation. “The little children adored him because they don’t have all that bullshit fed into them. Children don’t know race, ethnicity and colour. Kids are attracted to him and they are huge Sinner fans,” say the podcasters. With time and more Slams, Italy is sure to embrace Sinner. Sports has another chance to play the unifier, bury hatchets and foster togetherness. Tennis isn’t just about breaking serves; it can even be about breaking walls.
Send feedback to sandydwivedi@gmail.com