The special bond between Jannik Sinner and Turin And the reason why Nike played a key role
On Saturday evening I was in the car and while I was listening to the radio news, I heard the result of the ATP 250 final in Athens between Lorenzo Musetti and Novak Djokovic. At first it seemed normal to me — it was an important news ahead of the ATP Finals in Turin — but then I realized that it wasn't so obvious that the result of a tennis match from a little-known tournament could be announced on one of the country's major radio stations. This is a new dimension we've quickly become used to. Until three or four years ago, tennis wouldn't even make the sports news in Italy unless it was a major event like the Wimbledon final and to get updates you had to visit blogs or specialized sites. Now the scene has been revolutionized: television, newspapers and social feeds are flooded with every kind of tennis update. The main credit goes without doubt to Jannik Sinner, the world number one who, thanks to his successes and his rivalry/friendship with Carlos Alcaraz, has unintentionally coined a new version of the proverb that sees Italians as a nation of sailors, poets and now tennis players.
In this context, Turin has taken on a special meaning for Jannik Sinner. The tennis season is exhausting, very long, full of tournaments and events that force athletes to be at their physical and mental peak at all times. The consequence is that they can't always absorb the energy transmitted by the fans attending these events. The ATP Finals, however, represent the last appointment of the season and just like pupils who go to school more relaxed on the last day of the year, the players also loosen the tension at this event so they can enjoy the atmosphere more. Nike has managed to perfectly intercept this feeling and has worked with great care to cultivate a special relationship between Jannik Sinner and Turin. In 2023 they organized a rally with Carlos Alcaraz while in 2024 they presented a special version of his iconic hat.
The heart of these activities has always been the Nike Store on Via Roma which for the 2025 edition of the ATP Finals for an afternoon transformed into Jannik Sinner's locker room. Together with his coaches Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi, Sinner explored topics such as personal responsibility, gratitude towards those who support him and the value of collaboration in front of young pupils from Turin's tennis schools. "When I win, sharing is the most beautiful thing," Sinner said in one of the most important passages, ": victory is a way to thank those who helped me achieve it. I never feel alone on court: behind every shot there is my family and my team". As proof of the importance of the group, Sinner wanted to celebrate his staff and those present by giving away an exclusive t-shirt emblazoned with the writing, strictly orange, "Team Jannik". This gesture symbolizes the deep human and professional bond that joins Sinner to his staff but also the unique and special relationship with the city of Turin since the shirt will be available at the Nike Store in Turin for the coming weeks.
