Jannik Sinner recently shared his experience of leaving his hometown at a young age to pursue professional tennis training.
Hailing from the Italian village of Sexten, Sinner made the significant decision to relocate to Bordighera at the age of 13, where he joined Riccardo Piatti’s esteemed tennis academy.
At that time, Piatti was known for coaching top-tier players like Milos Raonic and having worked with renowned names such as Novak Djokovic, Ivan Ljubicic, and Richard Gasquet.
In a recent conversation with Vanity Fair, the reigning Australian Open champion delved into the emotions he faced upon leaving his parents, Siglinde and Johann, behind. Recalling the initial moments after he arrived in Bordighera, Sinner recounted reaching out to his parents just two hours later:
“It was tough for them [my parents] too. I was 13 and a half years old, and the truth is that as soon as I got there I started crying, I called them after two hours.
“They must have thought, ‘Here, we have to go get him’. Instead, I told him to be calm, that everything was fine,” Sinner said.
Sinner found solace in residing with Luka Cvjetkovic’s family in Bordighera, where he was among many aspiring champions honing their skills under Piatti’s guidance. Reflecting on his time with Cvjetkovic’s family, Sinner expressed gratitude for the welcoming atmosphere:
“I was lucky enough to stay in a fantastic family, that of Luka Cvjetkovic: there were two children and also a dog. I was happy, I’d never had a dog before…”
Sinner continued to train under Piatti until 2022 before enlisting the expertise of coaches Simone Vagnozzi and former World No. 22 Darren Cahill.
