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Jannik Sinner has turned his attention towards the French Open after winning his maiden Miami Open title. The Italian defeated Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets to clinch the prestigious ATP Masters 1000 tournament, his third title in what has so far been a remarkable season.
Dimitrov started the final on the front foot and had a break point opportunity in the third game of the first set. However, it was not long before Sinner settled into the contest, and the Italian's consistency from the baseline rendered the Bulgarian's powerful play rather futile. In the end, the 2021 and 2023 Miami Open finalist ran away with it, beating Dimitrov 6-3, 6-1, hitting 15 winners on the way.
During his press conference following the conclusion of the trophy presentation ceremony, Sinner was asked about his thoughts on the upcoming clay season. In his answer, the 22-year-old admitted to his past struggles on the surface.
"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?" Sinner said.
The reigning Australian Open champion went on to point out the lack of time for transitioning from the hard courts to clay. The main draw matches at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, the first big event of the clay season, will get underway on April 8.
"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," Sinner added.
However, despite his poor record on clay, the Italian said that his main goal for the clay season is to win the French Open. He also singled out the Italian Open in Rome as an important event.
"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," Sinner said.
Jannik Sinner's best finish at the French Open came in 2020
Sinner made his French Open debut in 2020 and became the youngest quarterfinalist at Roland Garros since Novak Djokovic in 2006. He also became the first player to reach the quarterfinals on his debut appearance at the French Open since Rafael Nadal in 2005. On his way to the quarterfinals, the Italian defeated the likes of David Goffin and Alexander Zverev.
However, against Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals, Sinner's inexperience showed. Ultimately, it was Nadal who progressed to the semis after beating the Italian 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-1.
Sinner's results at Roland Garros since his debut in 2020 have been disappointing. In 2021, he tasted defeat yet again at the hands of Nadal in the fourth round. The 2022 French Open saw the Italian retire midway through his fourth-round match against Andrey Rublev due to injury. In 2023, he exited the tournament in the second round as Daniel Altmaier pulled off one of the shocks of the tournament.
