There was a moment midway through Jannik Sinner’s superb four set triumph over Stan Wawrinka at Wimbledon on Monday when the Italian star had cause to pause.

The first two sets between a star on the rise and a champion on the comeback trail had lived up to the anticipation preceding the clash, with regular flashes of brilliance.

The point where Wawrinka levelled the match at one set apiece proved a perfect illustration.

Seizing the upper hand early in the point with his forehand, the Swiss master drew his rival forward with a backhand drop shot.

He then executed a lovely backhand lob volley, which had a scrambling Sinner playing the ball between his legs, enabling Wawrinka an easy overhead to clinch the set.

The rally brought the crowd on No.2 Court in the early evening to its feet as Sinner pondered how long the returning star could maintain a level so high.

 

Could the three-time Slam champion, who is in the twilight of a glittering career, upset the new sensation?

It proved the 37-year-old’s final punch, with Sinner swiftly regaining control to progress to the second round 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in two hours and 41 minutes.

His maiden tour level win on a grass court is a triumph the No.10 seed will treasure.

Sinner said he was delighted to secure his first victory at Wimbledon over a player with a resume as decorated as that of Wawrinka.

“It feels amazing, obviously. It took a little bit but I am very happy,” he said

“Playing against Stan is a very tough match. He is an incredible champion. He showed it so many times and I wish him all the best as he is coming back.”

The echo of the ball rebounding off the strings from some crisply struck forehands was similar to the sound of a whip cracking.

They flailed the tennis ball with their forehands, only to see it returned with even more pace.

It was Sinner who struck first to break for a 5-3 lead.

Shaping to club another forehand when facing break point in the eighth game, Wawrinka lost his feet and erred when sent scrambling straight after.

The aging master responded immediately in an entertaining opening set to level when Sinner tried to serve it out.

 

But the younger man continued to press and seized the early advantage when a Wawrinka backhand, hit from an awkward position on the court, struck the top of the net.

The difference in physique between the combatants was indicative of both the gulf in their ages and also their deeds on the court.

Sinner, who has reached quarter-finals at Roland-Garros and in the Australian Open, is slender, athletic yet lithe, a 21-year-old still to fully fill out properly as his body matures.

Wawrinka has been barrel-chested from the moment he stepped out in professional ranks. Between points he danced on his feet like a prize fighter shadow boxing prior to a bout.

The Swiss star remains extremely strong in legs that have covered thousands of miles during a professional career that began a year after the birth of his Italian rival in 2001.

He used his strength to his advantage in the second set, securing an early service break and holding it throughout a stanza where the crowd was engrossed by the quality of the tennis.

But Sinner is a player on the rise whereas Wawrinka is in the final act of his career, as he acknowledged in the lead-in to Wimbledon.

Wawrinka, who played his first match in a major at Roland-Garros since the 2021 Australian Open, is mindful one more serious injury will put an end to his time on the tour.

He hopes to play for as long as possible but wrote in a recent column that reaching the level that brought him  titles at the 2014 Australian Open, at Roland-Garros in 2015 and in New York a year later is probably beyond him now.

That being the case, it was understandable that he fell away as Sinner’s level improved.

“It was tough but I am very happy that in the end I played better, I served better, and hopefully it can make me better in the second round,” Sinner said.

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