Jannik Sinner takes immediate action after Miami Open fan falls ill during match

Jannik Sinner raced to the attention of a Miami Open fan who had fallen ill during the Italian’s last-16 match against Christopher O’Connell. It was announced by the umpire that a spectator had ‘fainted’ during the match, which was played in blistering heat in the USA.

Sinner went on to beat O’Connell 6-4 6-3 but his most important contribution of the day came when he sought water and a clean towel for the ill person in the crowd. The umpire announced: “We’ve stopped playing. Over my left shoulder someone has fainted, so we’re going to stop for the moment.”

Sinner immediately kicked into gear, grabbing water and a clean towel from his bag. He walked over to the stand and asked for crowd members in the lower seats to pass the accessories up to the person in need.

“Do you want to pass it up?” he said to ensure that the individuals continued to send the water bottles and towel up to the top of the stand.

He even offered to give a water bottle to someone lower down the stand who had thought he intended to give it to them.

Sinner then asked the umpire if there was any ice on court that he could send up to help the medics. He finally found some ice bags in a container situated to the side of the court and asked for them to be sent up.

The 22-year-old was given a standing ovation as he returned to the court. He went on to reach the quarter-final, in which he will face Andy Murray’s nemesis Tomas Machac.

Sinner has enjoyed a positive start to 2024. His triumph at the Australian Open was his maiden Grand Slam. He then went on to win the Rotterdam Open.

Tennis icon Federer listed Sinner alongside Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz as players who are now “announcing themselves” on the big stage.