The mild-mannered Tyrolean Terror Jannik Sinner has been steely at the Australian Open

After his first-round win over Nicolas Jarry at the Australian Open a little over a week ago, Jannik Sinner was asked if he was nervous about how the crowd would greet him, given his ongoing doping controversy and the way local star Nick Kyrigos was exploiting, trolling Sinner on social media. Sinner replied:

“Yeah, I was curious to see how it was. You never know what's happening. I was happy about the crowd. It was a very nice crowd. There were some for my opponent and some for me. It was a nice atmosphere. I was just looking forward to go on the court. This is why I practice for, no?”

This was classic Sinner, a somewhat opaque young man who speaks like he just stepped out of an Ernest Hemingway novel. A native of Italy’s alpine Tyrol region, Sinner is tight-lipped. But he’s also a humble, often self-effacing 23-year old who never loses his cool—or takes gratuitous shots at rivals. He’s a floppy-haired, lean and lanky ginger whose thin legs appear lost in his shorts—the kind of “nice boy” that parents’ dream of as a boyfriend for their own kid.

But that pleasant demeanor belies the Terminator-grade ruthlessness that Sinner brings to the tennis court. There, he becomes an efficient, cold-hearted Tyrolean Terror with a remarkable ability to block out any distraction from his mission, which currently is to repeat as the men’s singles champion at the ongoing Australian Open and claim his third major title.

The one-word definition that pops to mind is “implacable.”

On Wednesday evening, Sinner advanced toward his goal with a nearly flawless performance to overwhelm No. 8 ranked Alex de Minaur. The challenger, who is from Sydney, has a beefed-up game that sparked great hopes among his compatriots. But Sinner waxed him, jumping to an early lead in each set to win in under two hours, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1.

Sinner’s gracious remarks to a packed Rod Laver Arena in the ensuing on-court interview were no less convincing. “Today I was feeling everything,” he said. “On days like this when you break early in every set it’s a little easier. But he’s an amazing player. I know a lot of you guys came for him tonight. Thank you so much for being fair.”

Sinner met the new year toting a 14-match winning streak during which he won 26 consecutive sets. But he was also trailed by nagging questions about the ongoing adjudication of his doping case. Initially Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing by an independent tribunal, but the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has appealed the decision and is seeking a suspension of up to two years. A hearing on the appeal is set for April.

I haven't done anything wrong. That's why I'm still here. That's why I'm still playing. Jannik Sinner on doping case

After that opening win over Jarry, Sinner was asked—for the umpteenth time—how he manages to compartmentalize all “the noise,” including those snide digs by Nick Kyrgios. He turned the other cheek, replying:

“I don't think I have to answer this, to be honest. How do I block it? It's not that you just put it in a part and you just say ‘I don't think any more about this.’ In my mind I know exactly what happened, and that's how I block it, no?

"I haven't done anything wrong. That's why I'm still here. That's why I'm still playing. I don't want to respond on what Nick [or others] said.”

Whatever the reality is regarding the case, Sinner has handled the aspersions and skepticism that have been fired at him with aplomb, and the same kind of equanimity that characterize his tennis performances. This mild-mannered Tyrolean is not only a terror, he’s resolute.

That steely quality has been evident in all his matches at this tournament, but never more conspicuously than in his critical fourth-round tussle with a resurgent Holger Rune. Up to that point, Sinner, a former junior skiing champion, had slalomed through the draw without clipping a gate. But he woke up feeling unwell and skipped his customary pre-match hit.

Sinner won the first set against Rune, but midway through the second set, he began to feel ill. He was in obvious discomfort, limping, moving poorly during points, and, as he said later, feeling weak and dizzy. On one changeover, his hands were trembling as he held a towel close to his pale face.

But after a quick courtside visit from a physio and an 11-minute off-court evaluation and treatment, Sinner continued. He gradually grew stronger and went on to win the match in four sets.

“I don't want to talk, you know, so much about how I felt today,” Sinner told reporters after he won. “I was not feeling really well. I was struggling physically, but I don’t want to go into details, no? ... I think it was a great match. I think that's what we have to focus on, and some ups and downs.”

Read more: There's a screw loose at Australian Open, as Sinner's win over Rune interrupted by net problem

De Minaur had lost all nine previous meetings with Sinner, and that song remained the same. Sinner allowed just one break point, while feasting on six of 10 chances. He hit nearly three times as many winners as de Minaur, 27-10, and won six out of every 10 points when de Minaur hit a second serve. While game as ever, the undersized and underpowered Aussie simply had no place to hide.

Afterward, de Minaur heaped praise on Sinner and added: “After playing some great tennis on home soil and gaining so much, you feel like you just have been slapped across the face, to be honest, to finish off like that.”

Sinner’s semifinal opponent will be Ben Shelton, the diametrical opposite of de Minaur. The 22-year old American is 6-foot-4, solid of build, and blessed with great power. Shelton has beaten Sinner before (Shanghai in 2023), although the favorite won their last three meetings. Apart from a monstrous serve, Shelton has punishing groundstrokes, and a creative attacking style to go with his confidence-inducing history in Melbourne Park. He made his pro tour breakout by reaching the quarterfinals there two years ago.

Shelton feels that he’s evolved considerably since that year. Back then, he said, he was “redlining,” serving “amazing,” and hitting winners by the score. He said it’s different this year: His serve has been off and on, so he’s had to live by his wits. “I've had to pick up the slack with everything else in my game. I think I'm a much better returner right now than in the past. I'm winning in different ways, for sure.”

Those revelations may be music to Sinner’s ears, as lately nobody has been able to withstand his seamless, versatile game. He’s the dominant force on the tour. Sinner simply does everything really, really, well. That includes keeping his foot on the gas point-after-point.

Following his own quarterfinal win over Lorenzo Sonego, Shelton scrawled a message on the lens of a courtside camera.

The American slugger wrote: “Battle tested.”

He had better be.