‘Different player, different person’
Jannik Sinner produced a near-perfect display to ease his way past Daniil Medvedev on Friday and reach the Miami Open final.
In a replay of last yearâs final which Medvedev won, Sinner got his revenge with a 6-1 6-2 win for a fifth successive victory over his Russian opponent.
Speaking on court after the match, Sinner said he felt âvery happyâ with his performance against an out-of-sorts Medvedev.
âI felt great on the court today,â he said. âUsually, the more you go on in a tournament, the more comfortable I feel.
âHe [Medvedev] made a lot of mistakes, which he usually doesnât make. I just took the chance. I was expecting a really tough match.
âIf he breaks me in the first set or in the second set, itâs already very different.â
Medvedev defeated Sinner 7-5 6-3 in last yearâs final, but the first 2024 finalist feels different going into Sundayâs showdown.
The 22-year-old believes he is âa different player and a different personâ to the one that came runner-up 12 months ago.
âSometimes I think back and remember the night before the final, I couldnât sleep, I was sweating during the night,â Sinner admitted.
âNow, I handle the situation much, much better and Iâm just excited and happy to come back. Hopefully, I can play some good tennis on Sunday.â
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Sinner stormed his way through a speedy first set, where he landed back-to-back breaks to take a five-game lead.
Medvedev finally got on the board after 30 minutes to avoid a bagel, but it was too little too late as the Italian quickly served out the opener with a hold to love.
In the final game of the opening set, Medvedev adopted the unusual tactic of retreating from the baseline to help combat Sinnerâs destructive serves, but it did little to help as the world No. 3 continued his relentless form.
Medvedev was struggling just as much with the ball in hand, as Sinner kickstarted the second set equally as impressively as he concluded the first, with a break to love as the Russian began to grow frustrated.
Another crushing game from the Australian Open champion Sinner followed, as he found himself 2-0 up in the second set after just seven minutes.
It was not until the second point in the third game that Medvedev finally won a point on serve, as he managed to halve the deficit to keep himself in contention.
Sinner produced a series of monstrous serves to help restore his two-game lead, but Medvedev showed signs of improvement as he began to slowly grow and compete in the match for the first time.
However, a defeat looked inevitable for Medvedev as quickly as he looked to be back in it, as the excellent Sinner sealed another break for 4-1 to put himself within touching distance of the final.
After a brilliant rally with equally impressive efforts from the pair, Sinner moved to within a game of victory before Medvedev held serve to stay alive.
But Sinner served out to wrap up the match after one hour and nine minutes, as his stunning 2024 continued.
He will play either Alexander Zverev or Grigor Dimitrov in Sundayâs final as he seeks a 13th ATP title and the world No. 2 spot.
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