The Times of India at Wimbledon: Jannik Sinner arrived at Wimbledon leaving little to chance.After his dramatic collapse in the second round of the French Open, where he stood on the verge of victory before melting down in the heat, the 24-year-old underwent a series of tests to understand what his body was trying to tell him. He responded by training longer, under testing conditions and resisting the temptation to clutter his schedule with tournaments.Yet, with temperatures forecast to climb above 30C during the second week of the Championship, the episode – in which Sinner appeared to be in complete control against Juan Manuel Cerúndol, leading 6-3, 6-2, 5-1 before his energy levels dropped alarmingly – reopened lingering questions.Former Davis Cupper and commentator Prahlad Srinath points to the early part of Sinner’s season, during which he won a historic five consecutive Masters titles between March and May.“Toward the end of the first round match in Paris, he was already looking upset at his box. He seemed physically shaken and exhausted,” said Srinath.In south-west London, where Sinner begins his title defense against Miomir Kecmanovic on Monday under pleasant skies and temperatures not expected to exceed 24C, he should have little trouble getting the first goal. However, a match is a different matter from practice.“In practice, you might hit 500 balls, but it’s a structured, predictable practice,” explained Srinath, now a coach. “You can predict and control the movement. And then if someone is tired, we manage the load, the intensity and the volume. But in a match, your shot is explosive, it doesn’t matter if it’s five balls or 500 balls. It involves maximum effort.”Sinner himself acknowledged the gap between training and competition. “Of course you can’t simulate 100% what you feel in a match. We made some changes (after Paris), I won’t say big changes. I believe in the details. Right now we’re happy with what we’re doing, but we won’t see the result here. It’s a long process, there’s no magic.”Yash Pandey, High Performance Sports Physiotherapist with Indian Davis Cup team, agrees.The Italian, who has never won a match lasting more than three hours and 50 minutes and holds a record of 6-12 in five-set matches, will still be forced to take the scenic route if he is to go deep into the tournament.“This will be a process for him,” Pandey said, adding that despite concerns about the Italian, he remains the favourite. “He also knows the only way he’s going to lose is because of his fitness. I don’t see anyone else at the moment, unless someone comes out really strong on a given day. It could happen, but Sinner is the player to beat.”The conversation about #1 and their fragility doesn’t end with Sinner. Arya Sabalenka’s opening collapse from winning position in her Roland Garros quarter-final suggests that even tennis’ most physically imposing players may seem closer to the edge than they appear, even when in complete control of a match. While the sinner’s problem seems physical, Sabalenkin’s seems more mental.The 28-year-old revealed that after Roland Garros she spoke again to the psychologist she had previously worked with, believing it was the right step at this stage of her season.“I feel like I need someone to take all my thoughts out so I can clear my head a little bit before the big tournament,” she said. “I have my team, we talk a lot. Sometimes you have things you don’t want to throw at your team. It’s very important to have someone you can talk to and feel safe with.”
