"Never thought about big brands": Jannik Sinner marveled at Gucci brand partnership after humble beginnings

Jannik Sinner expressed his delight at his partnership with Gucci and admitted he never thought he would reach world No. 2 due to his humble origins in a small village. The 2024 Australian Open champion has had an extraordinary year with a record of 28-2 and three titles so far.

The Italian is enjoying an incredible run with 46 victories in his last 50 matches. His most recent triumph came against fellow countryman Lorenzo Sonego at the Madrid Open with a comfortable 6-0, 6-3 victory, advancing him to the fourth round of the tournament, where he is the top seed and prepares to face Russian Pavel Kotov.

Sinner clinched the title at the Miami Open at the end of March, displacing Carlos Alcaraz as world No. 2, and is increasingly closing in on the No. 1 spot, just behind Novak Djokovic. After defeating Sonego, the 22-year-old tennis player commented in a press conference that he never envisioned himself reaching world No. 2 coming from a normal family in the small town of San Candido:

"I never thought about anything like that when I was younger, I was just trying to be a professional player. I never thought I would become number two in the world coming from a normal family in a small town," Sinner said.

"I never thought about the big brands, and I still don't. I love being part of one of the families, meeting new people, and having them give me different points of view that make me grow as a person. I respect them a lot, I try to do my best," Sinner added.

Sinner is edging closer to the world No. 1 spot. Novak Djokovic's absence in Madrid allows him to narrow the gap, and if he clinches the title, he will be within striking distance in Rome to challenge for the top ranking. In the live rankings, Sinner has 8,710 points, still far from Djokovic's 9,990. If the Italian secures the Madrid title, he will reach 9,660.

At the Rome Open, Djokovic defends 180 points, and Sinner 90 points, narrowing the difference to just under 300 points. If the Italian maintains his excellent form this week in Madrid and next week in Rome, he has a good chance of overtaking Djokovic for the No. 1 spot before the French Open, depending also on Djokovic's performance. Additionally, Djokovic defends the title at Roland Garros, so he will be obligated to repeat the feat if he wants to prevent Sinner from claiming the top spot in the ATP Rankings.