Alcaraz beats Sinner in tiebreak thriller for China Open tennis title | Tennis news

Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz defeated US Open winner Jannik Sinner 6-7(6) 6-4 7-6(3) for his fourth title of the year.

Carlos Alcaraz rallied from a set down and held his nerve in a decisive tiebreak to beat defending champion Jannik Sinner 6-7(6) 6-4 7-6(3) in the China Open final and to win his fourth title of the season.

French Open and Wimbledon champion Alcaraz, who won both of his previous meetings with Sinner this year, recovered from a slow start to take victory in three hours and 21 minutes on Wednesday

He improved his head-to-head record with the Italian to 6-4.

While the stage may not have been as grand as some of their recent encounters, Sinner and Alcaraz pushed each other to the limit in the latest chapter of the budding rivalry.

He could have won in two, I could have won in two, it was a really exciting match. Jannik once again showed that he is the best player in the world at the level he is playing, Alcaraz, 21, said.

It's incredible, it's really high quality tennis, physically, mentally, he's a beast.

I had my chances in the first set but didn't make it, but overall I'm proud of myself. The way I handled the match, the way I arranged everything. For me it was a really good match.

BEIJING CHAMPION

In a breathtaking finale @carlosalcaraz fights back to beat defending champion Sinner6-7(6) 6-4 7-6(3) for the #ChinaOpen title!@chinaopen pic.twitter.com/idvMd6LRiz

ATP tour (@atptour) October 2, 2024

After both players defended break points in a cagey start, Alcaraz grabbed the early break for a 3-1 lead when Sinner's backhand went wide, before consolidating the lead in the next when his Italian opponent scored a shot.

World number one Sinner, whose last win over Alcaraz came in the semi-finals of this tournament last year, gradually found his range to 5-5 and saved two set points in the tiebreak to take the first set.

Alcaraz was on the ropes early in the second set and Sinner pushed him hard in a 15-minute match, but the second seed successfully held serve for 4-4.

Sinners' failure to break in the long match seemed to take the wind out of his sails, as Alcaraz powered through the next two games to level the match at a set apiece.

The Spaniard turned up the intensity on his forehand and broke for a 2-1 lead in the third set, but with victory seemingly in sight he suffered a lapse in concentration to allow Sinner to level at 4-4.

In the decisive tiebreak, Sinner seized control and took a 3–0 lead, but excellent work at the net helped Alcaraz win a few rallies to take the lead 4–3, before eventually clinching the title with an emphatic cross-court forehand winner. .

The tiebreak defeat was unusual for Sinner, who had won 18 of his past 19 tiebreaks.

The result meant Australian Open and US Open champion Sinner did not become the first man to retain the crown at the China National Tennis Center since Novak Djokovic won four straight titles between 2012 and 2015.

Playing under new supervision in Beijing, Sinner has admitted he has had sleepless nights over his doping case, which flared up again at the weekend when the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said it had appealed the decision to release him speak.

It was another great battle, said Sinner, who tested positive for a steroid twice in March, but tennis authorities cleared him of wrongdoing and allowed him to continue playing.

In August, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted Sinner's explanation that the drug inadvertently entered his system when his physiotherapist used a spray containing it to treat a cut and then gave the player massage and sports therapy.

WADA said on Saturday it had appealed and was seeking a ban of up to two years.