The moment Italy had been waiting for arrived on Sunday, and Jannik Sinner treated it as something bigger than history.
For Sinner, it was not only about becoming the first Italian man in 50 years to win the Italian Open since Adriano Panatta.
The world No. 1 delivered a composed 6-4, 6-4 victory over Casper Ruud in the final on the red clay of the Foro Italico, a result that also made him only the second man, after Novak Djokovic, to complete the career set of all nine ATP Masters 1000 titles, the premier events below the Grand Slams.
"There’s no better place to complete this set,” Sinner said. "For an Italian, it’s one of the most special places we play tennis. Winning here at least once in my career means a lot.”
Djokovic completed the milestone in 2018 in Cincinnati at age 31 and went on to win each Masters event multiple times. Sinner, now 24, is in the early stages of his prime, with Carlos Alcaraz currently sidelined by a right wrist injury and few clear threats in sight.
"Welcome to the exclusive club, Jannik,” Djokovic wrote on Instagram.
Sinner extended his winning streak to 29 matches, last losing to Jakub Mensik in the Qatar Open quarterfinals on Feb. 19. He is now 17-0 on clay this season heading into the French Open, which begins next Sunday.
Sinner celebrated calmly, as usual, breaking into a wide smile when he landed an inside-out forehand on the line on championship point before raising his hands over his head in relief. He then waved to the crowd, which included 1976 champion Panatta in the front row.
"Adriano, after 50 years we have won back a very important trophy,” Sinner told the 75-year-old Panatta, who took part in the trophy ceremony.
Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam Sinner has not yet won. He has two Australian Open titles and has won Wimbledon and the U.S. Open once each.
Sinner’s triumph, with Italy President Sergio Mattarella in attendance, came after he lost last year’s final in Rome to Alcaraz in his first tournament back following a three-month doping ban. That defeat came a day after Jasmine Paolini became the first Italian woman to win the Rome singles title in 40 years, having also claimed the doubles trophy with partner Sara Errani.
With many of Sinner’s fans dressed in orange, his signature color that matches his curly hair, the capacity crowd of 10,500 on Campo Centrale created a soccer-style atmosphere with chanting and loud support for the player who has become by far Italy’s most popular athlete.
After several key points, the crowd erupted into chants of "Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole; Sin-ner, Sin-ner.” The chanting continued during the trophy presentation.
Angelo Binaghi, president of the Italian tennis federation, suggested that even a 25,000-seat center court in Rome, larger than the U.S. Open’s Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world’s biggest tennis arena, would have been filled.
Sinner overcame exhaustion to beat Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals in a rain-delayed match that required two days to complete. There were no signs of fatigue against the 25th-ranked Ruud, who has long been one of the tour’s top clay-court players.
Ruud reached two finals at Roland Garros, losing to Rafael Nadal in 2022 and Novak Djokovic in 2023. He wasted an early break and a 2-0 lead at the start of the first set against Sinner, who broke back quickly and broke again late in the set, helped by three key drop shots, two of which Ruud did not attempt to chase.
A backhand winner down the line earned Sinner another break in the opening game of the second set.
Sinner improved to 5-0 against Ruud in their career meetings.
"What you’re doing this year is hard to describe in words,” Ruud said during the trophy ceremony. "It’s an honor to watch you play. Congratulations on making history.”
It was an added highlight for the host nation after Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori became the first Italian pair to win the men’s doubles title in Rome since 1960.
Bolelli and Vavassori defeated Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 7-6 (8), 6-7 (3), 10-3.
For both the singles and doubles finals, a packed crowd also gathered around a jumbo screen on the statue-lined Pietrangeli Court next to Campo Centrale.
Elina Svitolina beat Coco Gauff in the women’s singles final on Saturday.