Jannik Sinner is really getting into Daniil Medvedev’s head. Winner of their last four duels before this half in Miami (the Russian had won their first six clashes), the Italian made it five on Friday in Florida.
And this time, there was no duel between the two men but a solo act from the third player in the world, winner in straight sets (6-1, 6-2). In the final, his third in Miami after 2021 and 2023 (for two defeats), he will face Alexander Zverev or Grigor Dimitrov.
During his first four victories against Gilles Cervara’s protégé, Sinner had to battle, notably during his success in the final of the Australian Open where he found himself trailing two sets to zero. Medvedev then surprised his rival by developing a much more offensive game than usual. None of this happened in Miami. Serena Williams, seen in the stands and warmly applauded by the public, did not attend the fight that she had undoubtedly come to observe.
Not many people, in any case, must have anticipated this scenario of such an express victory for the Italian. From the start, he pushed on the opponent’s serve and got himself break points. The third was the right one and he closed the point with a short crosscourt forehand. Medvedev wanted to respond in the next game and offered himself two break balls, he misplaced the first and wasted the second by missing a short ball. He didn’t know it yet, but he had just let his best chance of the entire meeting slip away.
Sinner for the title and the No. 2 place
Behind, the Russian suffered the thunderbolt of Sinner, getting frustrated from the third game with the quality of the Italian’s ball. He lost his serve again and saw the games go down to 0-5 before finally managing to win his service game. After knocking out his opponent in the first set, the Italian did not stop there and continued his demonstration of accuracy and power. From the first game of the second act, he achieved a blank break on a sublime return. And when the Russian had an opportunity to get back together, he pulled out all the stops with a serve-forehand sequence like a parade to ward off the break point and two aces to make the world No. 4 understand that it was good he is the boss on the court.
“ I find that I have more solutions, more options when I’m on court. And I also progressed physically to be able to play the tennis that is mine today. And facing guys like Daniil forces you to become a better player, clearly », he commented after the match, visibly satisfied with his performance.
21
Since the start of the season, Sinner has racked up 21 victories for… only one defeat. It was in Indian Wells against Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals.
Behind, he once again took the service of his rival to continue his destructive operation against a helpless Medvedev whose glances towards his clan did not allow him to find a solution. Sinner will have the opportunity on Sunday to add a second Masters 1000 title to his list of achievements after the one acquired last year in Toronto. “ The day before my first grand final, here in 2021, I barely slept. I was nervous because I thought this might not happen again. Today, I know that there will be others and that I can win. It doesn’t mean I have to win, but I know I can win », Explained the Italian who changed his status. A victory would also allow him to become Novak Djokovic’s new runner-up in the ATP rankings since he would overtake Carlos Alcaraz.