Jannik Sinner was proud of his mental strength after putting his anti-doping scandal behind him to win the US Open for the first time.
The world No.1 came into the tournament shrouded in controversy after escaping a ban, despite two positive tests in March.
Many people thought Sinner was lucky not to be suspended, but he put all that to one side to claim a second grand slam title of the year by ending Taylor Fritz’s American dream in New York.
The Italian, who beat Britain’s Jack Draper in the semi-final, won 6-3 6-4 7-5 to add the US crown to the title he won in Australia at the start of the year.
“I’m happy how I handled this one. I’m just excited to have this trophy with me,” he said.
“It was and it’s still a little bit in my mind. It’s not that it’s gone, but when I’m on court, I try to focus about the game, I try to handle the situation the best possible way.
“Obviously it was very difficult for me to enjoy in certain moments. Also how I behaved or how I walked on the court in certain tournaments before, it was not the same as I used to be, so whoever knows me better, they know that something was wrong.
“But during this tournament, slowly I restarted to feel a little bit more how I am as a person.
“It was not easy, that’s for sure, but in the other way I tried to stay focused, which I guess I’ve done a great job mentally staying there every point I play, and that’s it.”
Sinner has denied any wrongdoing over his failed tests and was absolved of fault or negligence by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).
An independent tribunal accepted Sinner’s explanation that clostebol, an anabolic agent that can aid muscle growth, had accidentally entered his system via a product one of his team had used to treat a small wound.
But he came under heavy under criticism for the speed at which the case was resolved while some high-profile players, such as Nick Kyrgios, questioned whether he should have been banned regardless.
Nobody can question Sinner’s ability on court as he proved why he is ranked as the best player in the world.
He was aided by the early exits of Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic, but did what he needed to do throughout a tournament he grew into.
Fritz, backed by a partisan crowd on Arthur Ashe which included pop star Taylor Swift and her Kansas City Chiefs boyfriend Travis Kelce, was hoping to become the first American to win the men’s US Open title since Andy Roddick in 2003.
It was not a case of him freezing on the big stage of his first grand slam final, he just came up against an unstoppable force.
“As an American, I know we have been waiting for a champion for a long time, so I am sorry I couldn’t get it done this time,” he said, “But I am going to keep working and hopefully I’ll get it done next time.”