Jannik Sinner defeats world number 3 Alexander Zverev to triumph at the Madrid Masters 1000. It was a no-contest match at the 'Caja Magica', where the South Tyrolean prevailed 6-1, 6-2 in just 57 minutes, thus winning his fifth consecutive Masters 1000 (according to the schedule, without missing a single one) and surpassing Novak Djokovic's record .
Aggressive and focused, Jannik demolishes the German's resistance from the very first minutes, always too far behind the baseline and on the defensive end to cause problems for the world number one. Yet his serve, on a fast clay like Madrid's, should hurt. Not Sinner, who in a flash goes up 5-0 and closes the first set with a score of 6-1 in just 26 minutes .
In the second set, the break came in the third game , when Jannik moved forward and broke Zverev's serve again in the seventh game to close out the match 6-2. The match ended with 18 winners and 5 errors, with him winning more than double the number of points compared to his opponent: 51 to 23 .
Sinner thus breaks Djokovic's record, scoring his 23rd consecutive victory in less than two months, from Indian Wells to today , 28th if you count only the 1000 points. The Italian also surpasses 14,000 ATP points, a milestone achieved by only Djokovic, Federer and Nadal, and wins the 12th of 14 "big titles" (i.e. the 9 Masters 1000, the 4 Slams and the ATP Finals): only Rome and Roland Garros are missing . The only one in the history of tennis to achieve this feat was Novak Djokovic, Sinner has at least 10 years to reach him, but given his current form and the unfortunate absence of Alcaraz, he could need just over a month.
The statements
"I started the match very well with the break. I'm happy with my level. It was a beautiful victory. It was another incredible tournament. Behind my record, there's a lot of work, a lot of discipline, a lot of commitment every day . These results mean a lot to me. I'm very happy to continue to believe in myself. I have a great team behind me. People are talking about me, but it's right to talk about us too," Sinner commented. "Today wasn't your day," he then told Zverev, "but congratulations on the tournament. Now we go to Rome and Paris. I wish you the best."
(Unioneonline/L)