Jannik Sinner, superstar of the tennis scene. © AFP / TIZIANA FABI

Jannik Sinner is pleased by a secret visit

Jannik Sinner is sweeping his opponents like a hurricane at the French Open. Following his triumph over Andrey Rublev on Monday, a surprise came. The Sexten native will play his quarterfinals this afternoon.

June 04, 2025

From: det

Jannik Sinner's story should be familiar to anyone who even slightly knows the Sexten native: At the age of 13, the Pustertal native left his home in the South Tyrolean Dolomites to hone his tennis career in Bordighera on the Ligurian coast. During those years, Sinner, a rough diamond, was polished by Riccardo Piatti – one of the most prominent coaches in the tennis world. Together, the duo rose to the top of the world before their surprising split in the spring of 2022.

Since then, Sinner has been coached by Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill, who shaped the South Tyrolean into the best player in the world. And Piatti? He caused a surprise on Monday when, together with Andrea Volpini (who was also part of Sinner's coaching team at the time), he watched his former protégé's round of 16 match in the stadium. While the cameras occasionally panned to the tennis teacher, Sinner didn’t notice this secret visit – until a Eurosport-Reporter asked about it in an interview.

"I didn't know that, thanks for the info," Sinner said, then began to reminisce. "The years with Riccardo were very important to me; without them, I wouldn't be here today. He has a wonderful tennis center where I spent many years, and I spent a lot of time with him, Andrea (Volpini, editor's note), and Giulia Bruschi (tennis coach, editor's note)."

Like a third son

When Sinner left his South Tyrolean homeland, he was taken in by the family of Croatian tennis coach Luka Cvjetkovic. "I have to say, sometimes I really miss them," Sinner smiled. "They treated me like a third son; it was a wonderful time. I'll never forget the years with Riccardo, with Andrea, with Giulia, with Luka," Sinner says, adding: "It's great that they were here."

Jannik Sinner with Riccardo Piatti. © Jannik Sinner

Sinner now has his sights set on the quarterfinals. On Wednesday, he will face surprise winner Alexander Bublik in the third match after 11 a.m. The Kazakh is a true bird of paradise in the tennis scene.