Analysis:Wimbledon top seed Sinner leads Italian renaissance

MILAN : Millions of Italians, long known for their obsession with soccer, are about to find themselves torn between following their beloved Azzurri at Euro 2024 and tuning into Wimbledon to root for Jannik Sinner, Italy's first top seed in the tournament's history.

    Sinner, who this month snatched the world number one ranking from Novak Djokovic, geared up perfectly for the challenge when he won his first grasscourt trophy at Halle in Germany last weekend.

    Yet while the ginger-haired 22-year-old is grabbing most of the headlines, he is only the tip of the iceberg in a much broader Italian tennis renaissance, with a flourishing grass roots movement and seven men in the world's top 60.

    That strength in depth is matched only by the United States, which has the same number of top-60 players, while France and Russia boast five and Argentina four.

    The Italians on average are younger, however, ensuring a pool of talent for years to come. Of the nine Italian men in the top 100, six are between 20 and 23 years old.

    The turnaround has been dramatic for a nation that has traditionally struggled to produce top tier performers. Until Sinner won this year's Australian Open no Italian man had lifted a Grand Slam trophy since Adriano Panatta in Paris in 1976.

In 2010, the country still had no men in the world's top 50 and only three in the top 100.

    So what is Italy's secret?

    Andrea Binaghi, who has headed the Italian tennis federation (FITP) since 2001, pointed to reforms over the last 10-15 years to decentralise the coaching system and offer more financial, technical and psychological support to young talent.

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    This involved ditching the previous system in which promising youngsters, often under