After it came to light that World No.1 Jannik Sinner began working with the former fitness coach and physiotherapist of Serbian rival Novak Djokovic, the Italian shed some light on his mindset when making that decision.
Sinner will be competing at the ongoing Shanghai Masters, where he could potentially face Djokovic in the later rounds. The young Italian recently began working with Ulises Badio and Marco Panichi, Djokovic’s former physiotherapist and fitness coach respectively, as both men were seen in his player’s box during last week’s China Open.
Their experience played a huge role in getting the job, says Sinner
Panichi worked with Djokovic from 2019 till early this year, whereas Badio served as the Serb’s physiotherapist from 2017 till 2022. Both men were instrumental in Djokovic’s dominance during that period, but Sinner also highlighted their experience in their respective fields as instrumental to his decision to work with them.
“For sure they have a lot of experience, you know, in working with the world No.1 for so, so many years,” said Sinner. “Also together, you know, Marco and Ulises, you know, working together, it’s already a big help, because they know each other very well, which is for me very good, and very important also.
“For sure, they can help me, you know, especially a little bit off the court, trying to see new things and trying where we can improve as a player. They have a lot of experience.”
Furthermore, Sinner admitted his physical likeness to Djokovic could prove to be beneficial. However, the reigning US Open champion stated each athlete responded to training methods in a different manner.
“We have some similarities, me and [Novak Djokovic], but at the end we are still different, so, you know, we have to try to adapt our, you know, whatever is best for me, and trying to understand,” said Sinner. “But this, it takes time. But I’m very happy to have them on my team.”
