Sinner does not fail and confirms the wonderful loop with Alcaraz

Jannik Sinner's whirlwind tennis also ends up breaking through against Félix Auger-Aliassime, a youngster once singled out by specialists for a potential that has been gradually truncated by an excessively brittle mentality. The Italian, demanding but faithful to what he has long translated into pure routine: win, win, win, and win , dispatches him. Given James Blake's eagerness to elaborate on the post-match interview, the number one declares it a done deal with the final refrain: "Thank you for coming and for the support today..." With the job done (6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, in 3 hours 22 minutes) and a new date with Carlos Alcaraz confirmed, the tour leader is in a hurry to leave.

There's no delay possible; the final (8:00 p.m., Movistar+) is underway now. Sinner prefers not to dwell on numbers or achievements, but rather to speed up the process to return to Manhattan as soon as possible and begin to recharge his batteries and devise his plan. Every minute counts. A futuristic competitor, he faces the challenge of beating the Spaniard again, the second time in a row, bearing in mind that he outperformed him in the Wimbledon final and that what happens on Sunday will weigh heavily on the final verdict of the year: whoever triumphs will take the cake. At stake is the throne he has defended since July 2024 and, in his hands, the opportunity to deal a considerable blow to the course of the rivalry.

“We've played each other a few times recently. Carlos pushes me to the limit , but at the same time we feed off each other, and I think this kind of story is fantastic for the sport. I'm someone who loves these challenges, and I love putting myself in these kinds of situations and seeing how things turn out. So we'll see,” he says, downplaying the discomfort that led him to the locker room after losing the second set. “I felt a slight pinch when serving, but then everything was fine. There's nothing to worry about,” he reassures. Auger-Aliassime put up a decent fight, but it wasn't enough to seriously compromise him. This is his 300th victory in the elite.

Sinner continues to add and continue, who like Alcaraz , the 22-year-old, despite his young age, is already rubbing shoulders with the elite in historical terms. At 24, he is the youngest to reach the finals of the four majors in a single year and the fourth in history, joining Rod Laver, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic; he also joins the Swiss, the Serbian and Rafael Nadal as the only ones to have managed to string together five major finals in the entire Open Era (1968). However, he does not seem to harbor any greater concern than the immediate present, because, he emphasizes, his is a long-distance race that will have to be evaluated when the work is finished.

Sinner's ultimate goal isn't of intermediate proportions. He seeks decisiveness. It's a Sistine Chapel. So, once he's overcome the turbulence, the positive clostebol test that could have twisted his destiny and ultimately reduced him to a light three-month ban, he hit the accelerator hard and isn't looking back. He conquered Australia, then Wimbledon, and now he'll try to repeat the success of a year ago in New York, which would end a carousel that began 17 years ago because, since 2008, when Federer clinched the title for the fifth consecutive time, no player has managed to retain it. Between him and his goal, there's only one step. A higher step, though.

After all, it's Alcaraz. He cites service and continuity as the two most notable traits in his opponent's development, and also mentions serve, volley, and physical endurance as differentiating elements in underpinning his competitiveness. Sinner has developed on clay and grass, and on the hard court context, he currently bears no comparison due to his consistency. In the Grand Slams, he has accumulated 27 victories on this surface, equaling the tally recorded by Djokovic between 2011 and 2012—still far from Federer's 40 between 2005 and 2008—and he's looking forward to October and November, a more than productive period for him due to his reliability indoors.

On his way to Sunday's reunion, the San Candido native has dropped just two sets: against Denis Shapovalov and another against Auger-Aliassime. And, far from hinting at any signs of weakness, he has reinforced the impression that he is the man to beat, not to mention that Alcaraz won the 2022 match on this very court, although the Spaniard prevailed after saving a match point. Sinner failed to get his act together, just as he failed to finish the job three months ago at Roland Garros, where he had three. Had he done so, the imbalance at this point would have been significant, but the Italian doesn't turn his head for a single moment. He simply looks forward.