Jannik Sinner has made his thoughts clear on Novak Djokovic (Image: undefined via Getty Images)

Jannik Sinner admitted that beating Novak Djokovic when he’s playing at his best is a monumental feat. The ATP No. 1 is currently gearing up for a French Open semi-final clash with the Serbian titan this Friday, looking to add to his two Australian Opens and a US Open title.

However, the Italian tennis prodigy knows the task at hand as he faces off against the 24-time Grand Slam champion at Roland Garros on Friday. At just 23 years old, Sinner has been vocal about his respect for Djokovic, having met with him eight times on the court to date. And although Sinner has beaten the seasoned star in their last three matches, his own experiences tell him how formidable Djokovic can be when performing at his best.

Reflecting during the Australian Open this year, Sinner responded to Alexander Zverev’s comments comparing him to a prime Djokovic. He said: “Well it’s an amazing compliment from Sahsa. I think everyone is different in a way.

“Obviously I have some similarities with Novak’s game-style. I still believe when Novak plays at his best it’s very, very, very, very tough to beat him. Game-style wise, I looked up to him, trying to understand what he’s doing.

“How he handles the pressure moments and important moments. I still believe we are different as players, because everyone is different. But for sure we have similarities, and the similarities are having quite clean well striking from the base-line, having good movement, understanding a little bit where your opponent plays the ball.

Novak Djokovic has won 24 Grand Slams (Image: Getty Images)

“Obviously I aim to improve as a player, because I feel like I still can improve in certain areas. And that is where we are going to work on.”

The comments came after his impressive 6-3, 7-6 [7-4], 6-3 victory over Zverev in the final at Melbourne earlier this year. And it’s not the first time he has praised Djokovic. Speaking after his loss to the 38-year-old at the 2023 Nitto ATP Final, he said: “I think today [Djokovic] played really, really good, especially in the back of the court.

“But I think today I was not that sharp in certain moments. I felt like also that I dropped this little bit physically. When you drop a little bit against the best player in the world, he makes it look like it’s a big difference.”

Jannik Sinner looks up to Novak Djokovic (Image: Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Djokovic has reciprocated respect for his rival, despite rumours of disrespect before this year’s Australian Open. Djokovic participated in a word association game with GQ prior to the tournament, and while he tied Roger Federer with “elegance”, Rafael Nadal with “tenacity” and Carlos Alcaraz with “charisma”, his succinct response of “skiing” regarding Sinner raised eyebrows amongst some fans.

However, the tennis ace was swift to clarify the situation, saying at the the tournament: “Yes, I’ve seen it on social media that it’s being made into some kind of drama or a story, like I humiliated him or I’ve intentionally shown disrespect toward him.

“That’s ridiculous. It was one of those quiz type of interviews where you have to think of something in a second. Sinner’s name came up and I had this image in my head of him skiing, because I saw he was skiing somewhere.

“Also, the two of us talk about skiing always, how we’re going to ski together, etc. That’s why I said ‘skiing’, not because I don’t respect his achievements in tennis, on the contrary.”

He added: “It is as clear as day that the way he is dominating is worthy of every praise – both his playing style and the level of play. He’s got all the attributes I’ve mentioned in others [Federer, Nadal, Alcaraz], and now people make it seem like I am disrespecting him. Rubbish.”

All eyes are on Sinner and Djokovic as they prepare for their showdown on Court Philippe-Chatrier come Friday, each aiming to secure their place in the French Open final where they will face either Lorenzo Musetti or Carlos Alcaraz.