The 2023 ATP Finals are underway, and the first match is done with native player Jannik Sinner besting Stefanos Tsitsipas in two sets.
The Italian finally made his proper debut at the event after playing as an alternate two years ago. He received massive support from the crowd since the start of the match, and he simply overwhelmed his opponent.
Sinner was the heavy favourite because he's just been amazing in recent weeks. The Italian played a very solid match from the start taking the ball early in most rallies, which yielded results.
He has the more powerful game out of the two from the baseline, and it was pretty evident from the start. The early break in the opening set was sufficient, as he didn't face a single break point.
He had five aces and lost only a couple of points on his serve to win the opening set. The second set followed a similar pattern as he once again took an early break after which there was no return for Tsitsipas.
He was okay, but that's the point. It's not enough to be okay at the ATP Finals; you need to be great, and that wasn't enough. His serve also let him down as he couldn't create too much advantage with it.
Sinner read it perfectly the entire match and returned very well. The second serve was attacked immediately, and that was more than enough for the Italian to finish off the set. The final score was 6-4 6-4 as Sinner finished with 8 aces dropping only four points behind his first serve.
This was a huge win for the Italian in his pursuit to qualify for the semi-finals, and he's going to if he keeps playing like this. As for Tsitsipas, this makes it much harder for him to progress further.
Jannik Sinner | Stefanos Tsitsipas | |
---|---|---|
9 | Aces | 4 |
2 | Double Faults | 0 |
71% | First Serve % | 61% |
89% | Points Won After First Serve % | 70% |
60% | Points Won After Second Serve % | 58% |
2/5 | Break Point Conversion | 0/0 |
21 | Winners | 16 |
5 | Unforced Errors | 5 |