Dream final perfect: World number one Carlos Alcaraz followed his great rival Jannik Sinner into the final of the ATP Finals in Turin with a top performance. On Sunday (6 p.m./Sky) there will be the next big showdown between the two dominators in men’s tennis – the sixth and last on the tour this season.
Alcaraz beat Alexander Zverev’s group game conqueror, Félix Auger-Aliassime from Canada, 6:2, 6:4 in the second semifinal of the day. Hours earlier, Sinner had given the blatant outsider Alex de Minaur (Australia) no chance, to the delight of the 12,000 fans in the Turin Arena. It was 7:5, 6:2 after an atmospheric game.
Alcaraz showed his very best side in the first set. “It couldn’t be better,” said Boris Becker on the Sky microphone. Even Auger-Aliassime could only smile at Alcaraz’s cracking forehands, almost all of which found their target.
Things got tighter in the second round, and Auger-Aliassime proved to be a good indoor player, as he often does. Only on Friday he had defeated Zverev in two sets, and now he made it difficult for Alcaraz too. But the Spaniard was there in the crucial phase.
Sinner after a “very tough match” in the final
Sinner had previously been happy about a victory after a “very tough match”. “I’m very happy to end the last event of the year like this,” said the Italian.
In his fourth straight win in the fourth tournament match, Sinner showed his usual strong nerves and patience in the critical phase of the first round: he converted his eighth breakball to make the decisive decision. In the second set it became clear why de Minaur had lost to the Italian twelve times in twelve previous matches. Sinner was completely superior and marched to success number 13 in a direct comparison.
He extended an impressive series with his fourth win in the tournament. He has been unbeaten on indoor hard courts for 30 games now. The 31st victory in the final on Sunday would give Sinner his sixth ATP title of the year at the end of a successful season with two Grand Slam wins. For Alcaraz it would be title number nine.