Nobody said it would be easy to make tennis history.
On Friday, Jannik Sinner embarked on a test of his greatness at the Mutua Madrid Open, where he is bidding to become the first player ever to win five consecutive ATP Masters 1000 titles. The Italian survived a monumental debut against Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi, whom he defeated 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-4 under the gaze of the Manolo Santana Stadium, displaying a determination to push himself from the very first point.
On an emotionally charged day in Madrid, the top seed underlined his capacity for resilience. Far from finding a red carpet for his tournament opener, Sinner had to keep his composure and wait for his chance to seize psychological control of the match. Despite a suffocating first set, the Italian managed to turn the encounter in his favour, imposing a pace of play that his opponent simply could not withstand.
“I had to fight a lot, but I knew before the match it would be a very unusual court and conditions”, Sinner said during his on-court interview. “I think every day is different, hopefully I can improve for the next round. I tried to stay calm and that was the key to today’s win. Tomorrow I’ll have some time and I’ll try to use it positively”.
At a tournament where ball speed is a constant factor, Sinner had to deal with the fact that the man on the other side of the net had had time to adjust. Bonzi arrived for the match with three clashes already under his belt, having come through qualifiers and survived a main draw encounter. It proved to be enough of an advantage to balance the scales at a venue with very particular characteristics.
The Mutua Madrid Open remains one of the major trophies missing from Sinner’s cabinet; his best result in the Caja Magica is the quarter-finals he reached in 2024. Now, the Italian will try to catch some momentum in the Spanish capital in round three, where he faces Danish player Elmer Moller, another qualifier who has had enough time on court to find his rhythm and unleash his A-game.
Sinner is approaching this clay-court swing with lofty goals as he bids to conquer the biggest stages on the tour’s slowest surface. The Italian, who reached the final in Rome a year ago and was just a point away from lifting the French Open trophy, arrives in Spain’s capital having dethroned Carlos Alcaraz in the Monte Carlo Masters 1000.
Jannik reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the PIF ATP Rankings a few days ago by ascending to the throne in the principality. The injury-related absence of the Murcia native in Rome and at Roland Garros now guarantees the Italian’s position at the top of the ATP Tour for the coming weeks.