Jannik Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill recently revealed that after a match, Novak Djokovic was friendly enough to categorically break down the game of the Italian and point where he could improve.
Sinner and Djokovic have now met nine times on the tour, with the Italian holding a 5–4 lead in their head-to-head. Their first grass-court encounter came in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon and Sinner was up by two sets. However, Djokovic produced a remarkable comeback to win in five sets, and later, also told Cahill about areas where the Italian could improve.
Darren Cahill Reflects on Novak Djokovic’s Role in Jannik Sinner’s Growth
Speaking on Andy Roddick’s pocast Served with Andy Roddick, Daren Cahill recalled a conversation with Djokovic after his encounter with Sinner at Wimbledon 2022
“I saw Novak, and he’s always great with this. He’s always been incredible when you tap him on his shoulder,” Cahill said. “And I said, ‘Hey, listen, I just started with Jannik. Don’t tell me anything you don’t wanna tell me, but can I ask what you were feeling out there?'”
Cahill said that the Serb broke down Sinner’s game point by point, identifying what made him dangerous and where he remained too one-dimensional.
“He basically said, ‘Yeah, he hits the ball great, but there’s no variation. There’s no shape to his shot. There’s no height over the net. Doesn’t come to the net. He’s not trying to bring me in. I know that he returns well, but he’s not attacking my serve on the return.'”
Cahill clarified that these were not revelations, they were already part of the Sinner team’s internal blueprint. However, hearing it from Djokovic and relaying that feedback directly to Sinner helped crystallize the urgency.
“When you take that conversation and sit down with a young man like Jannik Sinner, and say, ‘Listen, I just spoke to Novak, and this is what he thinks’, that leaves a big impression on a young player.”
Jannik Sinner Has Won His Last 4 Matches Against Novak Djokovic
Sinner lost his first three encounters against Novak Djokovic and registered his first win over the Serb during the round-robin of the ATP Finals in 2023. The Serb later beat the Italian in the tournament’s final but has not been able to defeat him ever since.
Jannik Sinner bagged his first win over Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the 2024 Australian Open, thus ending the Serb’s 33-match winning streak at the Melbourne Major. That year, the Italian also beat Djokovic in the final of the Shanghai Masters.
The most recent encounter between the two came in the semifinals of this year’s French Open, with Sinner beating the 24-time Grand Slam champion 6-4, 7-5, 7-6(3).
