'Bravo, Bravo': Jannik Sinner becomes first Italian man to win U.S. Open men's final
Jannik Sinner produced a brutal display of baseline power as he became the first Italian man to win the U.S. Open with a 6-3 6-4 7-5 win over American Taylor Fritz in the final on Sunday.
Sinner held aloft his arms in celebration after breaking Fritz to clinch the title and cheers rang around Arthur Ashe Stadium, even though home fans had hoped to see Fritz end a 21-year U.S. men's Grand Slam drought.
Sinner was under a cloud of controversy at the start of the tournament after revelations that he tested positive twice for an anabolic agent in March but avoided a ban. An independent tribunal accepted his claim that the positive tests were the result of an unintentional contamination.
The top seed blocked out the furore in New York and with the win claimed his second Grand Slam title after winning the Australian Open earlier this year.
«We just went day-by-day, trying to practice well, even on the days off, believing in ourselves which is the most important. I understood, especially in this tournament, how important the mental part is in this sport,» said Sinner.
«I would like to thank everyone for being so fair in this amazing arena. It was a huge pleasure.»
Fritz got off to a dreadful start when he handed Sinner the break with an unforced error in the first game but settled his nerves, breaking back in the fourth game and surviving a 23-shot rally — the longest of the match — to save break point in the fifth.
But it was only a matter of time before the Italian would hit his stride and he broke the 12th seeded
