Sinner wins opening match of ATP Finals, continues to compete for number one position with Alcaraz

(Dan Tri) - Jannik Sinner confidently started his journey to defend his Nitto ATP Finals title in the early morning of November 11, winning the opening match 7-5, 6-1 against Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Sinner took a 1-0 lead in the Bjorn Borg group with the victory after 1 hour and 41 minutes. The 24-year-old did not face a break point against Auger-Aliassime, extending his indoor winning streak to 27 matches. He has not dropped a set at the Nitto ATP Finals since losing to Novak Djokovic in the 2023 final.

Sinner had a smooth start at the 2025 ATP Finals (Photo: Getty).

“It was a very tough match until 6-5. I had a couple of break points. Felix served really well; I missed a return once, but that can happen. He was very aggressive, so I was really happy to get through today. Obviously, winning the first set is very important in this tournament and format,” Sinner said after the match.

Sinner also expressed concern for his opponent: “I hope his injury is not too serious.”

The victory at the Inalpi Arena (Italy) keeps Sinner's hopes of surpassing Carlos Alcaraz for the year-end number one spot. The Italian is now 1,050 points behind Alcaraz in the updated ATP rankings, while the Spaniard kicked off his Nitto ATP Finals campaign with a win over Alex de Minaur yesterday.

In a rematch of the Paris Masters final just eight days earlier, Sinner and Auger-Aliassime played out a tense first set. The Canadian saved two break points in game six and a set point in game ten, but could not prevent Sinner from breaking the tiebreaker in game twelve. At that point, Auger-Aliassime appeared to be feeling pain in his left leg after serving while trailing 0-30.

He asked for a medical consultation on the sidelines at the end of the first set. Despite his best efforts in his return to the Nitto ATP Finals since 2022, the world No. 8 could not recover from a break loss in the second game of the second set. He received further treatment for his leg injury on the court at 0-3, when he told a physiotherapist that he was experiencing pain in his left calf, and again at 1-4.

Auger-Aliassime lost two consecutive matches to Sinner in November (Photo: Getty).

“Jannik is very difficult to beat anywhere, especially here. He started great and almost didn't give me a chance. From the first point to the last point, he was excellent. Right now, he is the most difficult player to beat here," Auger-Aliassime said of his opponent.

True to his style, Sinner maintained a clean and focused game, while Auger-Aliassime struggled physically at the net. The second seed finished the match winning 89% (32/36) of his first serve points. After back-to-back wins over Auger-Aliassime in Paris and Turin in November, Sinner moved up to 4-2.

“You still have to be stable and well balanced on the pitch. Mentally it is a little different, but at the same time it is an advantage. You have to be aware of that and use it in the right way, even though no one wants the game to be like that,” Sinner shared when asked about facing an opponent with physical problems.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/sinner-thang-tran-mo-man-atp-finals-tiep-tuc-dua-ngoi-so-mot-voi-alcaraz-20251111074622810.htm