Jannik Sinner Reaches Cincinnati Open Final After Beating Alexander Zverev
World number one tennis star Jannik Sinner marched into the final of the Cincinnati Open, defeating Alexander Zverev in a hard-fought semifinal on Sunday. Despite some limping and favoring his hip, Sinner produced stunning shots to beat the 2021 champion 7-6(9), 5-7, 7-6(4) in three hours and seven minutes.
“Sometimes you have to play a bit with the gut feeling. And I think this today was, my strength,” Sinner said in his on-court interview. “There were some up and downs, which can happen, especially when you play for more than three hours. It was a good match, I think for both of us. He served very, very well, so I can be very proud,” he added.
Sinner lost the second set and showed some discomfort in his hip, making it seem like Zverev was in a fine position to secure a win. However, Sinner produced incredible shots and narrowed his head-to-head deficit against Zverev to 2-4.
“It means a lot to me. It is a very different moment, what I am going through, so I am very happy about this result. The physical aspect, of course, I have to improve, because if I want to win Grand Slams or a bigger title, I have to be, for sure, more in shape. But I just tried to stay there mentally, which I am very proud of, and let us see what’s coming tomorrow,” said Sinner.
Sinner will face Frances Tiafoe in the title clash. Tiafoe sealed his first ATP Masters 1000 final on Sunday by beating Holger Rune 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(4). “Crazy, crazy. That last set was nuts. It got pretty breezy there at the end so we were kind of just playing the percentages. But yeah, I got really lucky there. I had a couple of net cords, but I also battled. I competed really hard and put myself in position,” said Tiafoe after his game.
After his win, Tiafoe reached the number 20 spot in the ATP Rankings. For the first time since February 1997, there will be five Americans in the top 20 when the rankings are released, with Taylor Fritz, Sebastian Korda, Tommy Paul, and Ben Shelton being among other Americans.
Doubts Revealed
Jannik Sinner -: Jannik Sinner is a professional tennis player from Italy. He is known for his strong performances in various tennis tournaments around the world.
Cincinnati Open -: The Cincinnati Open is a big tennis tournament held in Cincinnati, USA. Many top tennis players compete in this event.
Alexander Zverev -: Alexander Zverev is a professional tennis player from Germany. He is one of the top players in the world.
Hip issue -: A hip issue means that Jannik Sinner was having some pain or problem with his hip, which is the part of the body near the waist.
Frances Tiafoe -: Frances Tiafoe is a professional tennis player from the USA. He is known for his energetic playing style.
Holger Rune -: Holger Rune is a young professional tennis player from Denmark. He is considered one of the rising stars in tennis.
ATP Rankings -: ATP Rankings are a list that shows the best male tennis players in the world. ATP stands for Association of Tennis Professionals.
1997 -: 1997 is a year. In this context, it means that it has been a long time since five American tennis players were in the top 20 of the ATP Rankings.