2 min readMay 15, 2026 01:42 PM IST
Jannik Sinner left behind Serbian tennis ace Novak Djokovic with his victory over No. 14 Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals of the Italian Open. Thanks to his victory in Rome on Thursday, Sinner now holds the record — with 32 wins on the trot — for the most consecutive wins in Masters 1000 events.
“I don’t play for records. I play just for my own story. And obviously at the same time it means a lot to me,” Sinner said after his win over Rublev when asked about the record.
The Italian tennis ace may not care much for records but he now finds himself two wins away from becoming the first Italian male player to win the Italian Open in half a century. The clay court stretch has seen Sinner find hot form with the French Open coming up in 10 days.
“It’s a special tournament for me,” Sinner said, acutely aware of the fact that no Italian male player has won the Italian Open clay title since Adriano Panatta way back in 1976, 50 years ago. Panatta has been requested to hand over the trophy to this year’s champion on Sunday. Jasmine Paolini in 2025 became the first Italian woman to raise the trophy in 40 years. But the wait for the male winner has stretched past its fifth decade.
In the semis, the Italian tennis ace will take on 2023 Rome champion Daniil Medvedev, who came back to beat Spanish qualifier Martin Landaluce 1-6, 6-4, 7-5.
Once again, he is expected to get vociferous support from his home fans, like they did in his 6-2, 6-4 victory over Rublev.
A report from The Associated Press noted that around 10,500 fans at the Campo Centrale cheered for Sinner, with many supporters sporting hats and T-shirts in orange — his theme color.
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One group of fans held up a sign that said, “Sinner, Facce Sogna” — “Sinner, Make us dream.”
Sinner famously came within touching distance of the title last year, but was stopped in the final by Carlos Alcaraz, who is now sidelined due to a right wrist injury.
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