Jannik Sinner will seek his third ATP Masters 1000 crown of the year in Shanghai | ATP Tour

Shanghai

Sinner will seek his third ATP Masters 1000 crown of the year in Shanghai

The Italian secured world No. 1 in 2024, after qualifying for the final this Sunday

October 12, 2024

Little more can be asked of Jannik Sinner this season, in which he has reached No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings, has debuted his Grand Slams account and this Sunday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters he will seek his seventh crown of the year.

The Italian defeated the Czech Tomas Machac this Saturday at the ATP Masters 1000 in Shanghai in the semifinals 6-4, 7-5, in one hour and 43 minutes, equaling his personal best record of victories in a single season with 64 (also made in 2023).

“I think we all saw the great talent he has and his power,” said Sinner about Machac’s surprise in the quarterfinals against Carlos Alcaraz. “I was very careful in each game with the serve, because it is very aggressive and very fast.”

“I tried to be there at every point, see what was going to happen, as seen in the last game. Just playing every point with the maximum intensity possible, so I’m very happy. “I am happy to be in a final again,” added the Italian.

The last five seasons of Sinner

Sinner managed to appear in his fourth consecutive final since reaching the title match at the ATP Masters 1000 in Cincinnati last August. He also did it at the US Open, in his most recent tournament in Beijing (l. with Carlos Alcaraz) and this week at the ATP Masters 1000 in Shanghai.

And the main favorite will try to lift his third ATP Masters 1000 title of the season, after Miami and Cincinnati, at a sweet moment of the season. The Italian, who has been able to compete on the Chinese hard court with seeds such as No. 5 Daniil Medvedev, No. 16 Ben Shelton or No. 31 Tomás Etcheverry, has won 20 of his last 21 matches.

It was no exception in the Shanghai semifinals, where on the other side of the net he found a rival who was on the rise. Machac had knocked out No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals and No. 11 Tommy Paul in the round of 16.

Despite the moment of confidence that the Czech is experiencing, who next Monday will leave with his best position in the PIF ATP Rankings as No. 25 in the world, Sinner was able to extinguish the own light with which he was shining in Shanghai. As in the only precedent that the Lexus ATP Head2Head included, the Italian took the victory in two sets.

Sinner, who is participating for the second time in Shanghai, reached the last round after overcoming a hesitant start to the match. Machac opened the match with a break that allowed him to go 0-2 on the scoreboard. However, the Italian reacted by linking three games in a row to restore the order of serves until in the tenth game he broke the Czech’s serve again and secured the first set.

The match continued under the ruling of the service. Neither player had much trouble securing their turn of serve until in the ninth game Machac put Sinner on the ropes with two break point opportunities, which he was unable to convert. The Italian saved the situation and ended up closing out the victory.

In the final of the ATP Masters 1000 in Shanghai he will face Novak Djokovic, who will seek the 100th title of his career, after beating Taylor Fritz in the second semifinal 6-4, 7-6(6).

Did you know that…?

Jannik Sinner equals Carlos Alcaraz with six ATP Masters 1000 finals, both sharing the record for most title matches played in tournaments in this category among players born in 2000 or later.