2023-11-15 02:54:13
First time that the Italian beats the Serbian
Jannik Sinner is one step away from his first qualification to the semi-finals of the Nitto ATP Finals 2023. With one day left to finish the round robin action in the Green Group, the Italian has consolidated himself as the leader of the Green Group thanks to defeating to Novak Djokovic with partials of 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-6(2).
“It means a lot to me,” Sinner said while still on the court. “When you win once morest the world No. 1, who has won 24 Grand Slams, it goes up to the top of the best results of your career. I feel like it was a really tactical match and I managed to win, so I’m very happy.”
After Holger Rune’s victory, due to the withdrawal of Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 22-year-old Italian entered the court knowing that a victory in straight sets would qualify him in advance. And although he was very close to achieving it, he still achieved one of the best triumphs of his career. Nothing less than once morest the defending champion and the player with the most titles in the history of the tournament (6, the same as Roger Federer). Key has been the help he received from the public.
It was the first time they met on Italian territory, and the atmosphere was decisive in favor of Sinner, who although he entered the court with a 0-3 record in the Lexus ATP HeadToHead with Djokovic, and with the memory of having wasted an advantage from 2-0 in sets at Wimbledon 2022, the gap was not noticeable at all. The No. 4 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings played as if he had already beaten ‘Nole’ before.
His maturity on the track was evident from the beginning, even when he went through very tough obstacles. For example, midway through the first set, he went from saving a break point at 3-2 to wasting one at 3-3. Three remaining games later, he broke in the most heroic way. Djokovic led 40/0 at 5-5, but Sinner won the next nine points to take the lead following an hour of battle.
In the second set he was very close to sealing his early qualification to the semi-finals. There were no breakthrough opportunities for either side, and everything had to be decided in the tie-break, in which they had a 2-0 lead. But Djokovic resisted and ended up taking it. Without the slightest sign of disappointment at the diluted opportunity, Sinner continued to battle.
Nor did he fall mentally when he was unable to confirm the 3-2 break in the decider. It was the first break he had suffered this week, following his Sunday victory once morest Tsitsipas without facing any breakout opportunities. Sinner responded gallantly. He continued to challenge the No. 1, and reaped the rewards in a tie-break that played almost perfectly.
“I think I was really brave and smart in the important moments, especially in the third set. I feel like we were both serving very well, so there weren’t that many rallies, but when the rallies were made we both played very well. It was a match of very high level,” Jannik added.
This result, following more than three hours of play, allows Sinner to end Djokovic’s 19-match winning streak, which began last August in Cincinnati. The 36-year-old Serbian’s last defeat was once morest Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, played last July. And his last defeat in straight sets had been in April once morest his compatriot Dusan Lajovic in Banja Luka.
Sinner also achieved his second victory once morest a world No. 1, and first since he defeated Carlos Alcaraz this year in Miami. Furthermore, he is now the third player with at least 60 games won in the year, equaling Daniil Medvedev (66) and Alcaraz (64). On Friday he will be looking for one more when he faces Rune, with whom he has a 0-2 record.
It will be a new opportunity for the Italian public to help him improve a negative record, and win the Green Group. ‘Nole’, for his part, will clash once morest the Polish Hubert Hurkacz, Tsitsipas’ replacement.
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