- Cahill and fellow coach Simone Vagnozzi received envelope
- Pair were also given an inscribed silver plate after the win
- Tennis fans said they’d never seen it at a grand slam before
Australian Open boss Craig Tiley has left tennis fans puzzled by handing a mystery envelope to Jannik Sinner’s coaches Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi after the Italian’s stunning grand slam win on Sunday night.
The tournament director handed the piece of stationery to the men on centre court after Sinner had received his trophy, with the pair’s names handwritten on the front.
Tennis Australia posted the footage on the social media platform X, accompanied by the caption, ‘A deserving recognition for the team behind the champion’ – but didn’t reveal the contents.
Daily Mail Australia has asked Tennis Australia for comment.
Tiley shook hands with Cahill and Vagnozzi during the exchange and also presented them with a silver plate with an inscription reading ‘Australian Open Champion Coach Men’s Singles 2024’.
Craig Tiley (left) presented Jannik Sinner’s coaches Simone Vagnozzi (centre, in white) and Darren Cahill (right) with an envelope bearing their names after the Italian’s win
The pair were also given a silver plate inscribed with the words ‘Australian Open Champion Coach Men’s Singles 2024’ (pictured, right) – but puzzled fans said they’d never seen a presentation like it at a grand slam
The sight raised questions among tennis fans who said they’d never seen coaches given similar gifts at previous grand slams.
‘Oh wow. Do they give the team a trophy now? Don’t think I’ve ever seen this before,’ one wrote.
‘What a nice recognition. Is this new?’ another asked.
‘@darrencahill could you please tell us something about the envelope you received from @craigtiley? In fact, I never saw Goran Ivanisevic or Marian Vajda receiving anything during 10 previous trophy ceremony where @DjokerNole won the @AustralianOpen,’ a third fan said.
Ivanisevic currently coaches Novak Djokovic after taking over from Vjada, who split with the Serbian superstar in 2022.
Sinner was full of praise for his coaches after coming from two sets down to beat Daniil Medvedev on Sunday night to take his first grand slam crown.
‘My team there, everyone who is in this box, also working from home who works with me, we are trying to get better every day,’ he said.
Sinner climbed into the stands to celebrate with his coaches after defeating Daniil Medvedev
Cahill (right) won praise for stepping back and letting the 22-year-old celebrate with the rest of his entourage after the five-set victory
‘Even during the tournament we tried to get stronger, trying to understand every situation a little bit better so I’m so glad to have you there supporting me, understanding me, which sometimes is not easy because I am still a little bit young sometimes.’
Cahill was also praised for his selfless act after Sinner took match point.
The Italian, 22, collapsed on the floor after hitting the match-winning shot, before making his way to his players’ box to be embraced by his coaches.
Yet Cahill took a moment to step away and allow Sinner to celebrate with Vagnozzi and others.
‘Darren Cahill in the green hoodie there on the right of screen, and he is one of those guys that he doesn’t look for the limelight,’ Todd Woodbridge said on commentary.
‘He actually jumped out of the way with the big cuddle in the stands earlier, and he knows it’s all about the player and it’s all about the reaction back home; could you imagine the scenes in Italy?’
Jim Courier added: ‘Most of the team is Italian and (Simone) was the initial coach (Sinner) hired, and they decided together that they needed to bring in Darren Cahill as well, a technical expert.
‘(Cahill) has done a lot of the work changing the way (Sinner’s) game looks, the service motion has changed many times and Darren has talked often about how excellent he is at that aspect and how well they work together, with Darren coming in and helping with the tactics and some of the experience he brings.’
