Sinner To Battle Hurkacz In First-Ever Grass Court Final At Halle Open
Jannik Sinner is set to face Hubert Hurkacz in his first ATP Tour-level grass final after defeating Zhang Zhizhen 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) in the semifinals of the Halle Open. The world number one entered Saturday's match with Zhang, ranked 42nd globally, on a 35-match winning streak against players outside the ATP's top 20.
Despite a strong challenge from Zhang in North Rhine-Westphalia, Sinner managed to secure victory. The match featured only one break, with Sinner achieving it in the ninth game of the opening set. Zhang had a chance to break in the second set but failed to convert the lone break point as both players served confidently. The Chinese number one won 79% of his first-serve points compared to Sinner's 75%. However, Sinner's quality prevailed in the tie-break, where he converted his third match point to advance.
Hurkacz will be Sinner's opponent in the final after he upset Alexander Zverev earlier on Saturday. The fifth-seeded Pole delivered an impressive serving performance to win 7-6 (7-2), 6-2. Sinner and Hurkacz had played doubles together earlier this week, saving two match points in a thrilling win over Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow before losing to French duo Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul the following day.
What a week it has been for these two! From doubles teammates to singles finalists! @ATPHalle | #TerraWortmannOpen pic.twitter.com/JVnG0dz0mQ
— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 22, 2024
Sinner will have a chance to capture his first title on grass on Sunday, which would serve as excellent preparation for Wimbledon. He becomes just the third player to reach the Halle Open final while holding the top world ranking, following Roger Federer (2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2018) and Daniil Medvedev (2022).
Sign in with Google