Italian Jannik Sinner ended the 2023 ATP season in red-hot form, and tennis fans believe his recent success could be due to a bizarre incident that happened at the China Open a few weeks ago.
The World No.4 was caught on camera throwing up into a bin during his Beijing quarterfinal match against Grigor Dimitrov in late October, but managed to overcome the Bulgarian before eventually lifting the title. Since that bizarre incident, Sinner has lifted two titles, helped Italy win the Davis Cup, beaten Novak Djokovic multiple times and lost only two matches for the remainder of the year.
Following the viral moment, tennis fans labeled the Italian as "post-puke Sinner," with many believing this was a superior version of the 22-year old. Including his win over Dimitrov, Sinner won five matches in a row after throwing up, with his streak snapped by Ben Shelton in the round of 16 at the Shanghai Masters.
Subsequently, Sinner went on a 10-match winning streak as he lifted the title in Vienna, won his opening match in Paris before withdrawing, and reached the final of the ATP Finals with a 4-0 record. He also managed to beat Djokovic for the first time during the group stage, though the Serbian got revenge in the final a few days later.
Sinner's defeat to Djokovic and Shelton were his only two match losses during that period, giving him an 18-2 record after throwing up. The 10-time ATP titlist is also 9-1 against top 10 opponents as ‘post-puke Sinner’. Furthermore, he capped off an incredible end to the season by helping Italy win the Davis Cup for the first time since 1976, where he defeated Djokovic twice in the same day, in singles and doubles action.
"Legend of post puke Sinner growing by the second,” tweeted a fan after Sinner's win over Djokovic in Turin
"Post-puke Jannik Sinner is the best tennis player in the world,” tweeted one fan.
"I feel like post-puke Sinner can beat the top 5 in BO5 now. I just do!” exclaimed another fan.