Jannik Sinner admits he had ‘big luck’ in Australian Open win over Holger Rune
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Ailing defending champion Jannik Sinner admitted he was fortunate to survive a fourth-round battle with Holger Rune at the Australian Open. Sinner looked in deep trouble after losing the second set and he took a long medical timeout early in the third as he battled to stay on level terms.
But Rune was also feeling the heat and a bizarre delay at the beginning of the fourth set when Sinner broke the net with a serve also played into the Italian’s hands. He eventually completed a 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-2 victory, saying in his on-court interview: “It was for sure very, very tough.
“I knew in my mind that also he had some very long matches so I tried to stay there mentally. I just tried to stay connected with my service games and then in the return games see what happens. “This morning was a very strange morning. I didn’t even warm up today, trying to go on court as fit as I could. I knew in my mind I would struggle today. Game wise, I played very well. Quality shots that gave me the strength to fight on.”.
In his press conference, Sinner added of his struggles: “I was not feeling really well. I think we saw that today. I talked with the doctor already, before going on the court. I was a bit dizzy at times. I don’t want to go into details.”. The top seed also admitted the broken net was a major stroke of fortune, saying: “At this point, 20 minutes off court, trying to get back physically, putting some cold water on my head, it was very helpful. It was big, big luck to me today.”.
