Jimmy Connors highlights similarities between Jannik Sinner's and his own attitudes

Former World No. 1 Jimmy Connors has pointed out the commonalities in the mindset of Jannik Sinner and himself.

The Italian No. 1, Sinner, is currently competing at the ongoing Asian tennis swing and is gearing up for his Round-of-16 round clash at the Shanghai Masters. He began his campaign with a solid win over Marcos Giron before outfoxing Sebastian Baez in a three-set contest.

Connors, who is an eight-time Grand Slam champion, recently drew parallels between the Italian player's attitude and his own. He noted that the youngster also possesses the eagerness to immediately recover a lost service game, much like he did during his career.

"If I ever lost my serve, discouraged was the last word I was going to get. You got to jump on your opponent right away, and Sinner seems to have that quality. You know, it bothers him," Jimmy Connors said in the Advantage Connnors podcast.

Jimmy Connors, one of the most successful American tennis players in history, ended up with 109 career titles. In addition to his Grand Slam victories, the 71-year-old earned the prestigious title of the ATP Player of the Year twice during his career in 1974 and 1982.

As for Jannik Sinner, he boasts nine tour titles, the most recent of which came at the China Open in Beijing last week. The Italian's journey to victory included wins over Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev.

"I think he has potential to move up more" - Jimmy Connors on Jannik Sinner reaching a career-high ranking of World No. 4

Jannik Sinner at the China Open

Jimmy Connors feels that Jannik Sinner has the potential to raise his game even higher and break into the top two or three players in the world.

The 22-year-old has been in sensational form over the past few weeks on the main tour. He is unbeaten in his last seven matches and is currently competing at the Shanghai Masters in China.

Reflecting on his recent run of form, Connors emphasized that the World No. 4 has the potential to move up further in the rankings.

"Medvedev has been playing some pretty good tennis this year, especially on the hard courts. So to come out of there in straights and to win two tie breaks against Med, who's a pretty good tie-break player, is pretty strong, and I love seeing it. He's at a new all-time high, four, he's number four in the world. I think he's still got potential to move up more," Jimmy Connors said.

Jannik Sinner will be hoping to finish the season on a strong note and prepare well ahead of the ATP Finals, which will begin on November 12 in Turin.