The tennis drama from New York

First in the Wimbledon round of 4, a few weeks later in the Umag final: Jannik Sinner had the last two matches with the world number 3. proved that he can not only annoy him, but also beat him. In the third meeting of the season, the man from Murcia wanted to strike back. And he succeeded: Thanks to an incredible performance, Alcaraz put another strong Sinner in his place in five sets. From Sinner's point of view it was 6:7, 6:7, 6:5, 7:3, 6:5 after 15:XNUMX hours of top-class tennis. Particularly bitter for the South Tyrolean: He had a great chance of moving into the semi-finals with a match point in the fourth set. But it didn't want to happen.

The two protagonists chose a horrendous pace from the first rally. It quickly became clear to the spectators at Arthur Ashe Stadium that Alcaraz was out for revenge. The Spaniard played almost flawlessly from the baseline, attacked the second serves from the sixth player - and broke immediately. In doing so, he achieved something that he had not managed to do in the last two duels against Sinner: in Wimbledon and Umag he found 16 break chances, but did not take advantage of a single one. In front of the eyes of former US Open winners Andy Roddick (2003) and Juan Martin Del Potro (2009) as well as ski star Lindsey Vonn, Sinner reacted quickly. He got the break back and took the lead 3-2. The youngsters played at an extremely high level - especially Alcaraz, who was always the more aggressive in the rallies and put Sinner in great trouble during his service games. This had not least to do with Sinner's low odds and again (too) many double faults. And so the 19-year-old got two more breaks. The first set, in which Alcaraz hit 16 (!) winners, went to the Spaniard.

Sinner had to change something about his game - and he did. From the beginning of the second section, Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill's protégé appeared significantly more aggressive. He increasingly forced Alcaraz onto the defensive and slowly gained the upper hand. The reward for the courageous performance was the early break to make it 3-1. The duo pushed themselves to peak performance, the fans cheered spectacular points every minute. But just when Sinner was leading 5:4 and serving for the set, the first service let him down. Alcaraz punished this – and broke back. Not only that: he won ten points in a row and had four set points when Sinner served - also thanks to the point of the tournament. But the South Tyrolean kept a cool head, had a bit of luck and escaped into the tiebreak. This was hard to beat in terms of excitement. Sinner led 5:3, Alcaraz came close again. Then a set point that Alcaraz fended off with an incredible passing shot. A short time later the Spaniard had the fifth set point. But then: Ace from Sinner, who put everything to zero with a fantastic return winner down the line. Pure drama Because it now began to drizzle slightly, the roof of the Arthur Ashe closed. So it was played in indoor conditions that Sinner likes so much - like Alcaraz, by the way. And you could see that: The Spaniard visibly felt comfortable at the beginning of the third set, while Sinner lost some intensity after the exhausting second section - and his serve game made it 2:3. Three slight errors prevented a re-break and Alcaraz barely increased the score to 4:2. But Sinner didn't give in. He promptly regained the loss of serve only to be broken again at 5:5. A combination of too many second serves and strong returns from Alcaraz led to this.

The sentence decision? Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that! Sinner returned fantastically, Juan Carlos Ferrero's foster son found the right answer twice, but Sinner struck the third time. Tiebreak again. In this, the South Tyrolean, who was now playing with abandon, delivered a really big show. Not only did he make a mistake, he also grabbed extra time spectacularly – 7-0! The fourth set started at 1 a.m. local time. Match point awarded This started as desired for Sinner. Namely with a break! Sinner now had the upper hand, but Alcaraz did not give up. He equalized to 3:3, but was unable to counter Sinner's reaction, who got the second break of the set with a clean sheet - and was only two games away from reaching the semi-finals. But the nerves now began to flutter. The 21-year-old initially missed a match point, then committed a double fault and was broken after a missed forehand. A hard blow from which he never recovered. Completely let down by his serve, Alcaraz closed the set 7:5.

Everything now spoke for Alcaraz: the momentum, the physical freshness, his 6:1 record in fifth sets. Sinner could count on his lion heart and his incredible will. He somehow got through the first two service games, then grabbed the break, but immediately gave it back - even though he was already leading 40:15 in the game. Sinner's service continued to be a problem, which Alcaraz punished coldly. He ran to 5:3 – and made everything clear shortly afterwards.

This is the first time Alcaraz has reached the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament. There he will now meet the American local hero Frances Tiafoe, who defeated Andrey Rublev in three sets. He even still has the chance to become the new number 1 in the world rankings. Sinner, on the other hand, will leave New York disappointed, rest for a few days, look back on the tournament with pride and then concentrate on the end of the season.

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The tennis drama from New York

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