Rome, May 11: Jannik Sinner is just as comfortable on the hard courts of Miami as he is on the red clay of Rome, where he’s scheduled to face Rafael Nadal on Wednesday.
Lorenzo Musetti modeled his all-court game after Roger Federer.
And Matteo ‘The Hammer’ Berrettini has one of the biggest serve-forehand combinations in tennis.
The Italian men that are starting to crowd the ATP’s Top 100 there are currently 10 ranked that high, a national record that arrives just in time for this week’s Italian Open are all-court players.
That’s a major shift for a country once known for producing clay-court specialists. And one that has not had a men’s Grand Slam singles champion in 45 years since Adriano Panatta at the 1976 French Open (Italy’s women have been more successful, including Francesca Schiavone’s championship at Roland Garros in 2010 and Flavia Pennetta’s at the U.S. Open in 2015).
We’re training for modern tennis. That’s why we have players who don’t seem Italian’ in terms of their technical style,’ said Filippo Volandri, Italy’s Davis Cup captain.
Italy is now a regular host for top-level tournaments. The Next Gen ATP Finals (in Milan), the ATP Finals (in Turin) and the Davis Cup finals (in Turin) will be held on consecutive weeks in November.
It allows a lot of players to compete without having to travel all over the world, which helps them financially, Volandri said.
With Sinner, at least, the ultimate goal of producing a player capable of winning Grand Slam titles is starting to seem realistic. (AP)
