Jannik Sinner flies to the final at the Beijing tournament.
The Italian, world number 2 in tennis, beat Australian Alex De Minaur in three sets with a score of 6-3 4-6 6-2.
This is Sinner's 41st win of the season (against five losses). Cramps gave him a small scare, but they didn't stop the Italian from dropping a set to the Australian, but he then reached the final of the China Open for the third year in a row, being played on the hard courts of the Olympic Green Tennis Centre in Beijing. For De Minaur, Sinner remains the bête noire: eleven matches have seen him lose as many times.
"I tried to raise my level. It was a very tough match, and that's why I'm very satisfied," Jannik commented, enjoying yet another season finale. "It was a close match. At times he served well, but today I served very well and used my serve well. Alex is fast. I tried to stay focused and not lose mental energy. I won't have a day off, but a night to recover, and tomorrow I'll be fine. In the final, there's more adrenaline and a desire to be at my best. It's nice for me to have another good result."
Sinner will be playing his seventh title challenge of the season in eight tournaments (his only misstep was in Halle, when he was stopped in the round of 16 by Bublik). Tomorrow, he'll face either American Learner Tien, No. 52 in the ATP rankings, or Russian Daniil Medvedev, No. 18 in the rankings and the eighth seed.
(Unioneonline/D)
