Tennis legend Serena Williams expressed her admiration for Miami Open star Jannik Sinner, much to his disbelief. Williams heaped praise on world No.3 Sinner after he breezed into the Miami Open final, defeating defending champion Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
The tennis icon was present at Hard Rock Stadium and afterwards saw her good pal Grigor Dimitrov outplay Alexander Zverev in a three-setter. Having the time of his life at just 22, Sinner is showing some of the best tennis action ever this year.
He got off to a flying start by bagging the Australian Open in January where he defeated Novak Djokovic to clinch his first Grand Slam title. Next up, he scooped up another win at the Rotterdam Open. During that journey, he proudly reached his 200th career victory.
His winning streak did come to an end when Carlos Alcaraz got the better of him during the semi-finals in Indian Wells, but a determined Sinner bounced back in Miami. Williams recognised these feats while chatting with the man of the moment and paid him an enormous compliment.
“I wish I had my forehand like that,” Serena exclaimed to Sinner, who brushed it off saying: “Don’t say that! ” Yet, she reinforced her impression, saying: “Seriously, the racquet speed, the power, I was like, ‘Wow, night and day’.
“You’re unbelievable. Congrats on Australia,” she said, acknowledging Sinner’s major win. Williams wasn’t just catching up with Sinner, she also had a chat with Dimitrov. The seasoned ATP Tour player spoke about their enduring friendship during his post-match press conference.
“She’s amazing. We stay in touch. We nearly speak on a daily basis,” Dimitrov shared. “She said, ‘I’m gonna come watch’. I was like, ‘Okay.’ It’s always very humbling to have such a supporter in your corner, and she came, we had a little chat.
“I remember she was even here when I had my first Top 10 win (against Mardy Fish at the 2012 Hopman Cup). It was a very nice moment. I think we both remember that.
“It’s friendship, man. I think this is the best part. Tennis is tennis, but, you know, we are all living our dream right now.
“I think the real life begins after, and I think we have managed to be such good and close friends after so many years. To be able to lean on, to share thoughts, ideas, and sometimes to even vent to someone that actually played tennis… It helps a lot.”
Sinner also had kind words for Dimitrov. “We saw an amazing Grigor (in the quarter-final against Alcaraz),” he admitted.”He played incredible tennis. He’s very, very talented physically.
“You know, really, really good shape. “”He has the talent to change things up on a tennis court because of the way he plays. He can stand back, he can go close. He has very, very good hand skills. He can do whatever he wants.”
