Jannik Sinner refuses to 'sound arrogant' as he makes honest admission after opening win at Italian Open

Jannik Sinner triumphed in his first match back at the 2025 Italian Open after completing his three-month doping suspension. After his victory in the second round, the Italian made an honest admission about his mindset after sealing his victory.

Competing in his first tour-level encounter since emerging victorious at this year's Australian Open, Sinner delivered an impressive performance to claim a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Mariano Navone. The Italian was moved after making a strong start to his campaign at the ATP Masters 1000 event, acknowledging the "amazing feeling."

Nevertheless, Jannik Sinner admitted to having doubts about whether he would be able to compete at his best when he returned to the tour, pointing out that it would be "very arrogant" if he didn't. In his post-match press conference, the 23-year-old said that he was still uncertain about how he would perform in his next match, despite his dominant win over Navone.

"Of course. It's normal to have doubts. Would be strange to don't have any doubts. Would sound very arrogant, no? I have doubts. I had doubts before going on court today. I have doubts now what's going to happen in the next match," Jannik Sinner said.

"But we have to live with doubts because it means that you really care, that you want to improve, that you want to show yourself, that you want to do something special. Yeah, so I believe every one of us has daily doubts, so yeah," he added.

Sinner also opened up about going through a "roller coaster" of emotions in his tournament opener, mentioning how nervous he felt when serving for the first time.

"I was waiting for this moment quite a long time, I'm very happy" - Jannik Sinner on his 'amazing' return to Italian Open

Jannik Sinner - Source: Getty

At the same press conference, Jannik Sinner also spoke about the incredible reception he received from fans upon his return at the Italian Open, disclosing how much the support meant to him. The Italian expressed his happiness at kicking off his long-awaited comeback with a win.

"It has been amazing to go again on court after such a long time, having a great support also in the last days. From the first day I came here, it has been amazing. Yeah, I was waiting for this moment quite a long time. Really it doesn't matter as much as all the rest matters. So I'm very happy about today. Obviously happy to play at least one more match here, then we see how it goes," Sinner said.

After beating Mariana Navone, Sinner will lock horns with Jesper de Jong in the third round of the ATP Masters 1000 event. De Jong pulled off a 6-0, 6-2 upset over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina to set up his second meeting with the World No. 1. The Italian claimed a 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 win in their only previous encounter at the 2024 Australian Open.

If Jannik Sinner advances, he will take on the winner of the match between Francisco Cerundolo and Sebastian Ofner in the fourth round of the Italian Open.