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Saturday, December 06, 2025 | Daily Newspaper published by GPPC Doha, Qatar.

Tag Results for "Jannik Sinner" (5 articles)

Gulf Times
Sport

Italy's Sinner reclaims world no. 1 ranking after Paris Masters Victory

Italy’s Jannik Sinner has reclaimed the world No. 1 ranking in men’s tennis following the latest update of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) standings released Monday, which also introduced several changes within the top ten.Sinner’s return to the summit came after his triumph at the Paris Masters (ATP 1000) on Sunday, where he defeated Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime in the final to overtake Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, who slipped to second place.Among other notable movements, American Ben Shelton climbed one spot to sixth, pushing Australia’s Alex de Minaur down to seventh. Felix Auger-Aliassime rose two places to eighth, while Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti dropped from eighth to ninth, and Norway’s Casper Ruud fell to tenth.Sinner now leads the updated rankings with 11,500 points, followed by Alcaraz with 11,250 points. Germany’s Alexander Zverev holds third with 5,560 points, ahead of American Taylor Fritz in fourth with 4,735 points, and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in fifth with 4,580 points.Completing the top ten are Shelton (6th, 3,970 pts), De Minaur (7th, 3,935 pts), Auger-Aliassime (8th, 3,845 pts), Musetti (9th, 3,685 pts), and Ruud (10th, 3,235 pts).

Italy’s Jannik Sinner hits a return to Germany’s Daniel Altmaier during their singles match at the Shanghai Masters Saturday. AFP
Sport

Sinner makes a flying start as Zverev advances

World number two Jannik Sinner launched his Shanghai Masters title defence Saturday by breezing past Germany’s Daniel Altmaier 6-3, 6-3 while Alexander Zverev advanced despite toe trouble.Sinner, fresh from winning the China Open, broke early in both sets to take control and ease himself comfortably into the third round.The 49th-ranked Altmaier’s best chance came in the eighth game of the first set, but he failed to convert a breakpoint twice, allowing the Italian to hold with an ace.The second set provided even less opportunity to seriously bother the 24-year-old Wimbledon champion, but afterwards Sinner said it had been more difficult than it looked.“First match is never easy, especially when you don’t have a lot of time to adjust,” he said.“(Altmaier) is a very tough player, very talented... I just tried to stay mentally in a good point,” he added.“When I broke him twice very early in the set it gave me the confidence to serve the match out, so I’m very happy.”Sinner’s path to retaining the title has been made easier by the withdrawal of great rival Carlos Alcaraz, who dropped out last minute to rest.The Italian’s next match is Sunday against the Netherlands’ Tallon Griekspoor.Four-time Shanghai champion Novak Djokovic will take to the court again Sunday as well, facing Germany’s 150th-ranked Yannick Hanfmann.The tournament lost another top-10 player as Karen Khachanov was defeated by China’s Shang Juncheng 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.Shang, ranked 237th after slipping down the rankings due to injury, was egged on by an increasingly raucous crowd as ninth seed Khachanov flagged.Shang broke in the eighth game of the second set with a backhand.“I think I played well on the whole but I think everyone (in the crowd) must have put a lot of pressure on him,” the 20-year-old Shang laughed.World number three Zverev overcame an injury to his big toe to book his place in the third round, beating France’s Valentin Royer 6-4, 6-4.The German had a blistering start, breaking Royer in the first game and then sending down three aces to easily hold the second.The Frenchman found his feet but a crucial stumble saw him miss a break point in the eighth game, and Zverev took the set.Both players missed chances to break in the second, wowing the crowd with multiple tense rallies.Zverev finally broke in the ninth game then held the last game to win, despite having to take a medical break after limping off court.“It’s not a nice feeling to finish a match like that,” Zverev said afterwards, wincing.He said he sustained the injury during the follow-through of his serve, and would have it assessed Sunday.“I really don’t know what happened, so we’re going to check it out,” he said.World number seven Alex de Minaur comfortably dispatched Argentina’s Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-4, 6-2.Russian Andrey Rublev, ranked 14th, was upset by qualifier Yoshihito Nishioka 2-6, 6-1, 6-4.But compatriot Daniil Medvedev dominated qualifier Dalibor Svrcina to advance 6-1, 6-1.

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates winning the men's singles final against Italy's Jannik Sinner. REUTERS
Sport

Alcaraz outshines Sinner to claim second US Open title

Carlos Alcaraz ended the reign of Jannik Sinner with a 6-2 3-6 6-1 6-4 win to claim the US Open title on Sunday and tighten his grip on the era-defining rivalry between the torch-bearers of the men's game.In a perfect echo of the triumph that first propelled him to the number one spot in 2022, Alcaraz's second New York title lifted him back to the top of the world rankings as the 22-year-old Spaniard displaced Sinner and took his Grand Slam trophy haul to six.As grey clouds hovered over the iconic Arthur Ashe Stadium, Alcaraz continued to deliver the sunshine tennis that has lit up Flushing Meadows over the last fortnight, consolidating an early break by faking a drop to hit a winner that wrong-footed Sinner.He beamed after pulling off an outrageous half-volley at the net and wrapped up the opening set shortly afterwards, finishing it off with a big serve that Sinner crashed into the net as the Italian's metronomic precision briefly deserted him.With US President Donald Trump watching from a luxury box in the stands and adding another layer of spectacle to the third straight Grand Slam final between the duo this year, Sinner hit back to take the next set after saving an early break point.After missing a few steps to drop his first set of the championship, Alcaraz blasted his way to a 5-0 advantage in the third set before Sinner got on the board, and the Spaniard closed it out with a monster serve.Sinner conjured up two breathtaking volleys in the opening game of the fourth set to roaring applause and held serve after being pushed to the limit again, but he cracked under pressure and handed the crucial break to Alcaraz in the fifth game.Resembling a flamingo in full flight in his bright pink vest, Alcaraz soared ahead to secure the victory on his third match point and celebrated by raising his fists before a warm embrace with his rival and wild celebrations with his team.

Tennis - U.S. Open - Flushing Meadows, New York, United States - September 5, 2025 Italy's Jannik Sinner reacts during his semi final match against Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime REUTERS/Mike Segar     TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Sport

Sinner and Alcaraz set for gripping third act in US Open final

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the world's undisputed top two players, will square off in a third straight Grand Slam final today at the US Open. Top seed Sinner is the reigning champion and aiming to become the first man to successfully defend the US Open crown since Roger Federer won the last of five consecutive titles in 2008. Alcaraz, who won the first of his five Grand Slam titles in New York as a teenager three years ago, is the first man in a decade to reach the US Open final without dropping a set. It sets up a thrilling climax to a tournament preparing to host Donald Trump, the first sitting president to attend the US Open since Bill Clinton, who watched the women's final in 2000. It is the latest in a series of visits to major sporting events for the US leader after his trip to the NFL's Super Bowl in February and the FIFA Club World Cup final in July. It will mark New York-born billionaire Trump's first appearance at Flushing Meadows since 2015 – when the then-presidential candidate and wife Melania were booed on arrival by the crowd. On the court, Alcaraz has largely had the edge over his rival of late although Sinner is enjoying one of the all-time great seasons at Grand Slams. Only a miraculous escape act from Alcaraz, in which he saved three championship points, denied Sinner at the French Open and cost him a shot at a rare calendar Slam. Sinner brushed off that crushing loss by beating Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, adding to the Australian Open crown he retained in January. The pair will collide once more inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, the scene of a 5hr 15min quarter-final classic in 2022 that has come to shape the rivalry between two generational talents. "I feel like our rivalry started here playing an amazing match. We are two different players now, with different confidence too," said the 24-year-old Sinner, chasing a fifth major overall. "It's great for the sport having rivalries, having hopefully great matches in front of us. He's someone who pushed me to the limit." The 22-year-old Alcaraz ended Novak Djokovic's latest quest for a record 25th major in the semi-finals and has encountered few difficulties so far this fortnight. He is through to his seventh Grand Slam final but is gearing up for another punishing battle with Sinner, who is riding a 27-match winning run on hard courts at the majors. Alcaraz is 9-5 overall against Sinner and has won six of the past seven duels. "Obviously I'm going to take things about the last matches that I've played against him," said Alcaraz. "I'm going to take note, and I will see what I did wrong, what I did great. His matches are really demanding physically that he's able to play at his 100% during two, three, four hours, and I think that's the biggest improvement he has made in the last years." The Spaniard is in a rich vein of form of his own, winning 36 of his last 37 matches. The only loss in that time came to Sinner at Wimbledon. "I am performing at a high level and sending a message to the people on the circuit that this is my level," said Alcaraz. "It is not my maximum level, I still have room to improve, but it is a high level." As it was when Alcaraz beat Casper Ruud here in the 2022 final, the number one ranking will again be on the line today. Alcaraz eclipsed Lleyton Hewitt's record as the youngest world number one at the age of 19, but it is two years since he last held the top ranking. "It's a good goal, but we've tried not to focus too much on it in this tournament," said Alcaraz. "It will remind me of the 2022 final, when I was playing for a Slam and the number one spot. It will be like a flashback. But winning a Grand Slam comes before being number one."

Jannik Sinner of Italy returns against Vit Kopriva of Czechia during their US Open match at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City Tuesday. AFP
Sport

Sinner begins US Open defence with quick win

Jannik Sinner launched the defence of his US Open title Tuesday with a ruthless 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 win over Czech world number 89 Vit Kopriva.Top-ranked Sinner needed just an hour and 38 minutes to dispatch the 28-year-old Kopriva, who was appearing in the main draw at Flushing Meadows for the first time."It feels great to be back here. Obviously it's a very special tournament," said Sinner.The Italian is trying to become the first man to repeat as US Open champion since Roger Federer won five in a row from 2004-2008.It is the longest run without a successful men's title defence of any Grand Slam tournament in the Open era.Sinner, 24, next plays Alexei Popyrin or Emil Ruusuvuori for a place in the third round.He appeared to be fully recovered from the illness that forced him to retire against Carlos Alcaraz in the Cincinnati Open final last week."I'm very happy that I'm healthy again," Sinner said after a clinical display in which he broke Kopriva seven times."We did our best to be in the best possible shape here. I'm very happy about today's performance.""I have amazing memories (from last year). Every year is different. You come here starting this tournament hopefully in the best possible way, which I did."Sinner has won two of this season's three Grand Slams, the Australian Open and Wimbledon, while also reaching the final of the French Open where he held three championship points before losing to Alcaraz in a fifth-set tie-break.