World number one Jannik Sinner lifted his third ATP Masters trophy on Monday as the world number one beat Frances Tiafoe 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 to win the Cincinnati Open.
The Italian top seed warmed up for next week’s US Open in style, biding his time in a hard-fought first set before breaking the match open in the second.
Tiafoe, whose game faded after losing the first-set tiebreaker, still made an impression.
The American, who moves into the ranking top-20, saved three match points before Sinner claimed his 15th career title.
Cincinnati is the fifth trophy of 2024 for the 23-year-old Italian, who began the season with an Australian Open crown in Melbourne.
Sinner expressed his satisfaction after a challenging week, noting the mental difficulty but emphasizing his effort to perform at his best. Both he and Frances were fatigued from the semi-finals, which added tension to the match.
He was pleased to maintain his level during crucial moments and felt he managed the situations on court effectively, acknowledging the ups and downs as a normal part of the game, while highlighting his strong performance during key moments.
Sinner heads to the August 26 start of the US Open as a major favorite, standing more than 2,000 points clear of world number two Novak Djokovic.
Sinner expressed confidence but emphasized the importance of recovery to be ready for New York, highlighting that this is the main goal of the US Open swing. He is pleased with his current position and remains eager to continue playing, hoping to deliver strong tennis in New York.
Against Tiafoe, Sinner hit 29 winners, including 13 aces, and broke the American twice from eight attempts.
Tiafoe admitted to Sinner at the net that he was “really tired” and not accustomed to playing as many matches as the top players, before congratulating Sinner with a “well-played.”
The pair dueled for nearly an hour in the opening set, with the Italian making 10 aces on the way into a tiebreaker.
One crack in Tiafoe’s defense was enough to hand Sinner two set point chances, with the first converted by the top seed for the early lead.
Tiafoe dropped serve to start the second as his reserves began to run dry, Sinner achieved a double break in a fifth game lasting for more than 10 minutes with seven deuces.
With a 4-1 lead, the Italian still had to fight, with Tiafoe saving three match points to climb to 5-2 before the top seed completed his work a game later.
Sinner is the youngest champion here since Andy Murray in 2008.
With AFP
