US Open locks Jannik Sinner and Taylor Fritz as the Grand Slam finalists
Jannik Sinner made history by becoming the first Italian man to advance to the US Open final on Friday. While Taylor Fritz beat Frances Tiafoe in the second semifinal to become the first American man to reach a Grand Slam final in 15 years. Sinner, the Australian Open champion, triumphed over a struggling Jack Draper from Britain with scores of 7-5, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2 in the semi-finals. Draper, who was the first British man to reach this stage since Andy Murray's 2012 title win, faltered under the pressure of 10 double faults and 43 unforced errors as he dealt with his illness in the midst of the match. Despite only being broken three times in the previous five rounds and not losing a set, Draper’s run came to an end.
Jannik Sinner beats Jack Draper in a physically challenging clash to enter the US Open final
Jannik Sinner began breaking down Draper’s impressive streak by securing a break for a 4-3 lead, although Draper quickly equalised. A sixth double fault from Draper in the 11th game led to another break, and Sinner served out the set with a clean game. The second set witnessed considerable drama as Draper vomited at the side of the court. Sinner, meanwhile, injured his left wrist while trying to recover from a fall. Despite this, Sinner won the point, but Draper managed to hold serve for 5-4.
Both players were attended to by trainers on the court, with Sinner taking a full medical timeout. The interruption proved brief, as Sinner dominated the tiebreaker to take a commanding two-set lead. Draper, visibly exhausted, could only watch as the third set—and the match—slipped away.
World No.1 Jannik Sinner talked about the semi-final thriller in the post match presentation, The clash between Sinner and Draper was as animated as it gets for the audience. For the players, however, the match proved significantly taxing on their bodies. Sinner narrowly avoided a serious injury on his wrist while Draper fell victim to illness on the main day. Sinner expressed the same as he talked about the tussle.
"Jack and I know each other very well, we are great friends off court," said Sinner."It was a very physical match. He's so tough to beat so I'm excited to be in the final. In the final, it will be a very tough challenge whoever I play," added 23-year-old Sinner. "I'm happy to be in that position because if you are in the final on a Sunday it means you are doing an amazing job,” he concluded.
With Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz having both exited the tournament early, a new US Open champion will be crowned on Sunday. Andy Roddick remains the last American man to win a Grand Slam singles title, having claimed the US Open. The first American in the US Open final after 15 years, Taylor Fritz was just 5 at the time of Andy Roddick’s win. The 21-year-old Taylor beat Frances Tiafoe 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in the semifinal to lock in his place against Sinner for the US Open final slated for Sunday.
