Tennis superstar Jannik Sinner. © ANSA / LUKAS COCH
Jannik Sinner returns to the Australian Open stage on Monday for the round of 16. The local media previously teased the Sesto superstar.
25 January 2026
From: det
17:0 wins: Yes, it is an incredible record that Jannik Sinner has against Italian tennis players. The man from Sexten has never lost to an Azzurro in his career. On Monday (from 8 a.m. CET/SportNews-Live ticker) another victory should be added. In the round of 16 of the Australian Open, South Tyrol’s world star will face Luciano Darderi, who is currently ranked 25th in the world.
In Down Under on Sunday, the topic of conversation was less the upcoming round of 16, but rather Sinner’s third round win against Eliot Spizzirri. The Pusterer had to struggle enormously with the scorching heat and the cramps in that match. A short break during which the roof was closed due to the heat rule helped Sinner regain his strength and initiate the turnaround.
Champion becomes Crampion
The Australian media then turned up its nose. From the “Defending Champion”, i.e. the defending champion, Sinner became the “Defending Crampion”. Crampion is an allusion to “cramps”. His opponent Spizzirri did not make the applied heat rule and the associated closure of the roof a big issue, but some newspapers did. You write about the great luck that Sinner was saved from.
Sinner wasn’t feeling well at all. © APA/afp / DAVID GRAY
“Sinner’s luck with the heat policy helps him avoid elimination,” they said Sunday Herald Sun. The newspaper printed on the front page Sunday Age a photo of Sinner and wrote: “For his sins”, which is once again an allusion to Jannik’s last name Sinner (in English it means “sinner”). “The heat gave him cramps all over his body, but the heat policy spared him,” the daily newspaper said.
Sinner in the Australian media.
The Pusterer himself might be less interested in this. His full focus is on the round of 16 against Luciano Darderi. On Monday, the Sesto native wants to continue working on his impeccable Italian record.
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