Jannik Sinner arrived at the China Open suggesting Carlos Alcaraz was the man to beat in the absence of Novak Djokovic from the Far East swing of the ATP Tour, but he may just have confirmed he is the man in form heading into the Shanghai Masters.
Although, Jannik Sinner was ill from the start of the Beijing championship, he fought hard from to beat Daniil Medvedev in the final to lift the China Open title. Daniil Medvedev came into the China Open unbeaten in his last six meetings against Jannik Sinner, but Sinner got his breakthrough victory over the Russian star.
Jannik Sinner wins the China Open
Jannik Sinner won the China Open title after a breakthrough victory in the tightly contested final, beating Daniil Medvedev 7-6 (2), 7-6 (2) in Beijing. The 22-year-old Italian had lost his previous six matches against Medvedev but prevailed here in a little over two hours to claim his ninth career ATP title, and third of the season.
Jannik Sinner, seeded sixth here, also defeated the No 1 seed, Carlos Alcaraz, for the first time on a hard court with a 7-6 (7-4), 6-1 victory in the semi-final. Sinner said during the trophy ceremony, “Daniil, thanks for letting me win at least one match. We have had some very tough battles, especially this year. Thanks for making me a much better player. My team are working a lot. Thank you very much and it is special to share this moment with you.”
Jannik Sinner finished with 29 winners and 13 unforced errors, compared to 26 and 11 for his Russian opponent. Neither player was able to convert a break point, but superior play at the net (winning 23 points to Medvedev’s eight) and in the tie-breaks made the difference for Sinner, who is closing in on a place at the end-of-year ATP Finals.
Jannik Sinner claims win over Carlos Alcaraz helped him against Daniil Medvedev
After an outstanding performance by Jannik Sinner at the China Open, that saw him defeat Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev in semifinals and final.
Jannik Sinner said beating Carlos Alcaraz gave him the confidence to win the final against Daniil Medvedev, “When you beat these types of players you feel great, it’s clear. Except for Novak, practically all of the best players in the world have been part of the draw. It has been a very high-level tournament.”
“At the beginning of the week I was very happy. At the same time, it is a pleasure & a privilege to participate here. Beating Carlos gave me a lot of confidence going into this final. Carlos & Daniil are two totally different players, so I had to adjust some things. I think that was the key”, Sinner added via Beijing Press.
Jannik Sinner was also proud of himself for overcoming illness to win the title, “The week didn’t start in the best possible way. I didn’t feel too good. The first match was very, very hard. I managed to get through it & little by little I started feeling better, better & better as the days went by.”
Would Jannik Sinner get a back to back victory in the Far East ATP tour? Only time will tell as the Italian head to the Rolex Shanghai Open finals.
