Jannik Sinner advanced at the Australian Open on Monday after defeating Luciano Darderi in the fourth round.
Sinner, who is aiming to win a third consecutive men’s singles title at the event, defeated Darderi 6-1, 6-3, 7-6 in two hours and nine minutes.
Sinner will face Ben Shelton in the quarter-finals on Wednesday. Shelton, the eighth seed, defeated Casper Ruud in four sets on Monday.
Despite being the world number two, Sinner played on the Margaret Court Arena – the number two court behind the Rod Laver Arena.
After defeating his countryman, Sinner spoke about playing on the Margaret Court Arena, a stadium he has not played in for the best part of two years.
Jannik Sinner says how he feels about playing on Margaret Court Arena
Jannik Sinner last competed at the Margaret Court Arena in January 2024, when he contested an Australian Open fourth-round match against Karen Khachanov.
Sinner, who went on to claim his first Grand Slam title at the event, played 13 consecutive matches on Rod Laver Arena between January 2024 and January 2024.
On Monday, Sinner competed at the Margaret Court Arena for the first time in two years.
During his post-match press conference, Sinner said: “Yeah, I mean, for me, every court here is very nice. I’m very happy also to go on Margaret Court.
“I felt like the third set was a bit different because it also got a bit later. The court slows down a bit. From 7:30 on it’s a bit different. But this I feel like it’s in every court.
“I don’t know how the outside courts are, for example, without the stadiums around. But all things considered, it’s more or less the same.
“Of course, it might feel a bit faster because the court itself is a bit smaller than Rod Laver. The same thing in Roland Garros if you play in Chatrier or in Lenglen.
“I feel like it also depends how much space you have around to move. But I didn’t feel so much difference, to be honest.”
When was the Margaret Court Arena built?
The Margaret Court Arena was first built in 1988, designed to be a purpose-built stadium that would accommodate the amount of fans attending the Australian Open.
The court is named after Margaret Court, the 25-time Grand Slam women’s singles champion who won 10 Australian Open singles titles during her career.
The Rod Laver Arena – the Australian Open’s number one court – was also constructed in 1988.
Rod Laver, the arena’s namesake, won 11 Grand Slam titles during his career and is a player described by Roger Federer as his idol.
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