(Turin) If Jannik Sinner felt the pressure as a crowd favorite at the ATP Finals, the Italian didn’t seem bothered.
Sinner scored a victory in two sets of 6-4, 6-4 at the expense of the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas on Sunday in the opening match of the end-of-season tournament bringing together the eight best players of the year.
Under the cheers of the crowd, Sinner lived up to the expectations of the Italian fans with sharp baseline shots and a powerful serve.
Before he could even answer questions on the field, fans were chanting his name so loudly that he could do nothing but take a step back, smile and thank the crowd.
“It’s a bit like a football stadium. With the roof closed, it’s a little noisier, Sinner pointed out. It’s good. It means people really care about me. »
Aged 22, Sinner has won four titles this year, including a first in the Masters 1000. He is fourth in the ATP rankings — becoming the highest-ranked Italian since Adriano Panatta, almost 50 years ago.
Sinner even showed off some of his new touch when he landed a backhand lob winner early in the second set.
Then, on his first match point, Sinner made an ace from the far side of the court to end the match in one hour and 25 minutes.
“The match went really well and the crowd support was crazy,” Sinner said on the pitch. It’s not just about improvement, but also about where you want to go. And the destination I wanted to reach this year was here. »
Sinner had nine aces to Tsitsipas’s six on the fast court inside the Pala Alpitour. The Italian did not face any break points.
“He really improved his serve and he showed it today,” Tsitsipas observed. I couldn’t do much. I tried to guess a few times. It serves near lines and corners. »
Tsitsipas, the 2019 tournament champion, had cut short a training session on Friday due to an apparent arm problem.
Later in the Green Group, Novak Djokovic will be able to reignite his budding rivalry with Holger Rune. The Serb only needs one more victory to secure first position in the end-of-year rankings for a record eighth time.
Monday’s matches in the Red Group feature Carlos Alcaraz against Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev against Andrey Rublev.
The top two players from each group advance to the semi-finals.
