Jimmy Connors says Jannik Sinner has done something ‘incredible’ in the last 18 months which he absolutely loves

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Jannik Sinner became a three-time Grand Slam champion after defending his Australian Open title.

Sinner beat Alexander Zverev on Rod Laver Arena to become 11th man in the Open Era to defend the Australian Open.

The Italian has received messages from all across the world, with Rafael Nadal congratulating Sinner on his achievement.

Sinner also proved Andy Roddick wrong with his latest run to the Australian Open, as he continues his winning streak on hard courts.

Jimmy Connors explains what he absolutely loves that Jannik Sinner has done

Sinner has been compared to Novak Djokovic, something that the world number one admits he sees as a big compliment.

Jimmy Connors has also been impressed by Sinner, and spoke on his podcast about what has particularly impressed him.

The Grand Slam champion focussed on Sinner’s consistency, having won a tour-leading eight titles in 2024.

“Going for the past year and a half or maybe even a little longer now, he has been on a roll,” said Connors. “He has been on a tear up. His last 18 months or so has been pretty incredible and to keep playing at that high a level, match in, match out, tournament in, tournament out.

“To put your reputation on the line. I love that. That was what drove me during my time, it was to go out and reach what I expected of myself every time I expected with myself every time I stepped on the court. And boy he has been playing incredible.”

Jannik Sinner matches Jimmy Connors stat with Australian Open win

Sinner made history at the Australian Open, achieving many records with his victory in Melbourne.

Connors has never defended the Australian Open title, having only appeared at the tournament twice, winning one title and finishing runner-up the following year.

However, the former world number one does have a matching statistic with Sinner after he won the Australian Open.

The Australian Open final was Sinner’s 50th match as world number one, matching Jimmy Connors and Bjorn Borg with the most victories (47) in that period.

Sinner was expected to join Carlos Alcaraz in Rotterdam to defend his title, but has elected to take some time away from the matchcourt after his third Grand Slam victory.