Jannik Sinner delighted his home fans at the ATP Finals in Turin with a straight-sets win over Stefanos Tsitsipas in his opening round-robin match on Sunday.
Sinner, who is only the fourth Italian in history to qualify for the end-of-year event, surged to a 6-4, 6-4, victory over the 2019 champion. It is the first time in his career that he has beaten Tsitsipas on multiple occasions within the same season after also winning their meeting in Rotterdam. However, he still trails their head-to-head 3-5.
The latest performance from the 22-year-old saw him fire 21 winners past Tsitsipas as he won 89% of his first service points. Sinner has now won 58 matches this season which is the most achieved by an Italian male player in the Open Era. His record against top 10 players in 2023 currently stands at nine wins against five losses.
“I’m very excited to finally step on the court. opening the Finals here (in Turin) is really special,” Sinner said afterward.
“Playing against Stefanos, I already knew that it was going to be very tough. But I think I handled the situation really well. I tried to stay pretty aggressive, which I did.’
“I’m happy to start out with a win and hopefully, I can keep up this intensity.”
Leading up to the showdown there have been concerns over Tsitsipas’ fitness after the Greek was forced to end his practice sessions early two days in a row. Taking to the court there were no visible signs of physical discomfort from the world No.6 but he did look jaded at times.
Tsitsipas’ undoing early in the opening set was a duo of unforced errors. Sinner first drew blood in the fifth game after a forehand error followed by a backhand error from his rival awarded him his first break. In the lead, the home favorite held his nerve to close out the opener on his second set point opportunity after a Tsitsipas shot crashed into the net.
Continuing to pile the pressure on his rival with the help of some thunderous hitting, Sinner broke instantly at the start of the second frame. He then had a chance to secure a double break for a 3-0 lead but failed to do so. Despite the blip, he sealed victory in just under 90 minutes by converting his first match point with an ace.
“Playing indoors with the roof closed, there is more noise,” Sinner commented before adding, “Huge thanks to the crowd, it is such an incredible feeling. Especially when you’re standing there in the tunnel and coming out. It’s not something you have every day. So I tried to be really happy on the court but also very concentrated.”
Seeking to become the first Italian to win the ATP Finals, Sinner will play reigning champion Novak Djokovic and Denmark’s Holger Rune later in the week. Only the top two players of the Green Group will progress to the knockout stages next weekend.
