'I should have done better against Rafael Nadal,' said Jannik Sinner

In their second meeting on the Tour, Rafael Nadal defeated Jannik Sinner 7-5, 6-4 in two hours and ten minutes in the Rome Open second round.

Unlike in Madrid, Nadal improved his game and went for riskier shots, overcoming a break deficit in the opening set on two occasions and rattling off the last four games from 4-2 down in set number two to seal the deal in straight sets. Speaking about the match, Jannik said that he should have done better, especially in those moments when he was in front.

"The mentality is obviously the most important part of this sport. I knew that I could play good or quite well against Rafa at Roland Garros for many reasons. There I showed it for one set. This time, I knew that I could do something more, and I walked on the court more confident about my weapons. I'm improving and trying to have more weapons every tournament I play and more solutions for every problem.

This is the point that we are working on, and there we have to improve a bit more. It's a lesson, which is tough to accept, but I will take it for sure because I have to get better.

I'm more disappointed and especially sad today because I think we both played quite a high-level match. Now it's tough to accept that I'm already out because I was a break up in the first set and once in the second. It's tough to accept because Roland Garros was more like a test to see where I am, and this time I knew that I could have, and maybe should have done something more.

When I lose, I always try to draw positive things and find what I should have done better. Obviously, right now, it's tough to talk about the match; twenty minutes ago, I was still on the court. I'm still playing a bit in my head what I should have done better in some exact points.

It's tough right now, to be honest, because playing here, in Rome, it's quite a special tournament, especially for Italians. If I had won today, tomorrow would have been a bit of a crowd. I love to play in front of crowds. Rafa handled the tough moments better than me, like the last time in Paris. There are lessons that I can learn. We have to come together with my team and watch this match many times. Then we will see what we should have done better," Jannik Sinner said.