Daniil Medvedev loses out to favourite opponent Jannik Sinner for the first time – and misses out on the title at the ATP tournament final in Beijing.
Tennis pro Jannik Sinner has won the high-profile ATP tournament in Beijing for the first time in his career.
In the final in the Chinese capital, the Italian beat Daniil Medvedev of Russia 7:6 (7:2), 7:6 (7:2) in a high-class match. For Sinner it was the first victory over his fearful opponent in the seventh attempt.
The 22-year-old South Tyrolean, who next week will become the first Italian since Adriano Panatta in 1976 to move up to number four in the world rankings, had already beaten Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) in the semi-finals.
He celebrated his ninth title on the tour. Medvedev, on the other hand, failed to match Alexander Zverev with his 21st tournament win.
Beijing: Medvedev takes out Zverev
Medvedev, who had beaten the Olympic champion in two sets in the semi-finals, struggled from the start. Sinner dominated most of the rallies and eventually gave his opponent no chance in the tiebreak.
On his way to his third tournament win this year after triumphing at the Masters in Toronto and the tournament in Montpellier, Sinner also convinced with his strong service in the second set. He won four of his six service games to nil.
With the exception of US Open winner Novak Djokovic, most of the world’s elite served at the 500 tournament in Beijing. The next big event on the tour, where the two finalists will also compete, is the Masters in Shanghai, which already started on Wednesday.