Sinner imitates Seppi: victory in the marathon match

At a pleasant 25 degrees, Sinner met an opponent whose name he had probably never heard before this tournament. 18-year-old Zachary Svajda (ATP 716) mostly competes in ITF and Challenger tournaments and has only appeared on the big stage once so far: At the US Open 2019, as a 16-year-old, he narrowly missed a sensational success against the Italian Paolo Lorenzi, who has since resigned. Just like back then, the 1.75 m tall right-hander presented himself strongly on Thursday, but in the end Sinner was the more hardened player in the crucial moments. The South Tyrolean won 6:3, 7:6, 6:7 and 6:4 and Andreas Seppi followed into the third round.

Already in the first few minutes it became clear why Svajda has not achieved a better ranking so far. The serve is below average in the ATP comparison, and the forehand is not a great weapon either. The combination of both means that Svajda's service games are not inviolable, which Sinner immediately knew how to take advantage of: If he left three break chances in his opponent's first service game, he seized the first opportunity ice-cold in the second attempt. The 20-year-old then skillfully managed this lead and closed the set 6:3 as befits his standing. He only hit 38% of his first serves into the field. Svajda increases This meager quota took revenge in the second half of the game - at least at the beginning. In this, Svajda continued to reveal his obvious weaknesses, but at the same time he also developed his strengths, such as the dangerous backhand and excellent footwork. Thanks to these qualities - and the South Tyrolean's increased number of mistakes - Svajda gained a lead. He ran to 5:2 and even had a set point on Sinner's serve. The 20-year-old thwarted this in the style of a champion and broke immediately afterwards. The 2:5 became a 5:5 and finally a 6:6. Sinner played the following tiebreak much better than the rest of the set. The logical consequence? A clear 7:2 and the 2:0 set lead.

Zachary Svajda got Sinner into big trouble. © APA/getty / MATTHEW STOCKMAN

The low service rate that lasted throughout the match meant that the so-called free points became a rarity. Almost every service came back, so Sinner was often involved in long rallies when serving on his own serve. These took strength, a lot of strength. Svajda seemed to have greater reserves and took his opponent's serve at the beginning of the third set. Sinner misses two match points The world number 16 promptly corrected. but this slip-up and then took the lead 3-2 on her own serve. Svajda, who played much more aggressively in sets two and three, didn't give up, fended off a break ball when the score was 3:4 and then had the chance to make it 5:4. The edge of the net helped Sinner, who held his serve. When the score was 5:5, he destroyed another break opportunity before missing two match points - another tiebreak. Svajda, cheered on by the fans on Court 10, now sensed his chance and - aided by four backhand errors from Sinner - actually forced a fourth set.

In this one too, the two youngsters dueled on equal terms, neither gained a decisive advantage. Even two breaks couldn't break the balance. It wasn't until the score was 4:4, when Svajda served, that Sinner put the decisive pinprick: he was practically given the break by the bravely fighting American with a double fault. The Sesto native didn't miss it and after three and a half hours secured his place in the third round, where a veteran, Gael Monfils (ATP 20), is now waiting.

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Sinner imitates Seppi: victory in the marathon match

Jannik Sinner followed Andreas Seppi on Thursday (local time) and reached the third round at the US Open in New York. As in the opening match against Max Purcell, the Sexten player gave up one set, but ultimately fought through after three and a half hours.

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