It was not until the age of 12 that Sinner, a national giant slalom runner-up as a junior, decided to focus solely on tennis – a move that prompted him to move away from his family two years later.
“I went away from home when I was 14 years old. So I had to grow up quite fast, trying to cook for myself, trying to do laundry,” Sinner said.
“That was maybe the fastest way to grow up.”
Despite being away from his parents, Sinner’s coaches say his “wonderful” mother and father have brought him up “really well”.
“What you see of Jannik on the court is incredibly respectful, whether it be to the umpires or ball-kids or lines-people, anybody around,” Darren Cahill said.
“He’s got his feet on the ground. His parents are exactly the same as him.”
In line with growing up fast, Sinner’s journey to tennis success has been a quick one.
Aged 17 he won his first title on the Challenger Tour and nine months later he established himself as one of the sport’s brightest young stars by winning the NextGen Finals title.
Since then he has won 10 ATP titles, reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon and won his first major in Melbourne – but the world number four still says it’s hard for his success to sink in.
“You don’t even realise how fast things are going,” said Sinner.
“Sitting here with this trophy, watching it – for me, I still have to realise it has happened.”
Sinner has been cheered on throughout the highs and lows of his journey to date by the ‘Carota Boys’ – a loyal group of Italian fans who attend his matches wearing carrot costumes after Sinner ate one at a changeover during a match in Vienna in 2019.
Before the final, Sinner joked his fan group had even become more famous than him – but that is certainly not the case after he became just the second player in the Open Era to fight back from two sets down to win the Australian Open final.
The ‘Carota Boys’, who were at his matches earlier in the tournament, were watching the final together in Turin but there were plenty of other fans holding up toy carrots or dressed in orange on Rod Laver Arena.
