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Sinner sends Italy into doubles decider, will next team Berrettini

  • Posted: Nov 21, 2024

Jannik Sinner kept alive Italy’s hopes of defending its Davis Cup title on Thursday. The World No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings delivered a commanding performance under pressure, downing Sebastian Baez 6-2, 6-1 to level the Final 8 tie with Argentina at 1-1.

“It was a must-win match,” Sinner said. “Very different conditions. The court is very, very fast and tough to play. I haven’t had so much time to adapt to the conditions, but I’m happy about today. The most important thing was to keep Italy alive. Now, doubles, anything can happen.”

Fresh off claiming the Nitto ATP Finals trophy, Sinner relied on a hefty serving performance and stayed aggressive early in rallies to dictate baseline exchanges. The 23-year-old did not face a break point until 4-0 in the second set, erasing all four of Baez’s chances that game to maintain his double-break lead.

Sinner, who has won 27 of his past 28 matches, claimed 71 per cent of his first-serve points, compared to Baez’s 46 per cent.

Boasting a 71-6 season record, Sinner will next team Matteo Berrettini in the deciding doubles match against Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni.

Earlier, Argentine Francisco Cerundolo downed Olympic bronze medalist Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-1 in the opening rubber. The 26-year-old Cerundolo seamlessly transitioned from defence to offence and pinned Musetti deep beyond the baseline en route to a 90-minute victory.

Cerundolo, who beat Musetti in the Umag final earlier this year, converted six of his 13 break point chances, according to Infosys ATP Stats. “I played one of the best matches of the year for sure,” said Cerundolo. “I did it for my team because now we have a chance to win.”

The winner between Italy and Argentina will face Australia in the semi-finals Saturday. Last year, Sinner clinched Italy’s first Davis Cup title since 1976 with a victory against Australia’s Alex de Minaur. Sinner, an 18-time tour-level titlist, saved three match points against Novak Djokovic to send Italy to the championship round.

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A private masterclass with Nadal, Sinner and Alcaraz

  • Posted: Nov 21, 2024

“How old are you?”
“17.”

“What are you playing in at the moment?”
“Junior tournaments, I was planning to be in the USA this week.”

“What about next year?”
“I’d like to get a good result at the Junior Grand Slams, to improve as a player and make the jump to real tennis, with adults.”

“Stick at it, it’s a long road, but the most important thing is that you enjoy it.”

The words of advice came from Rafael Nadal, he was talking to Andres Santamarta. The 17-year-old enjoyed the experience of a lifetime this week at the Davis Cup Finals, where he had the privilege of forming part of the Spanish team as a sparring partner.

<img alt=”Rafael Nadal with 17-year-old Andres Santamarta at the 2024 Davis Cup Final 8. ” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/11/21/16/29/nadal-santamarta-davis-cup-2024.jpg?w=100%25″ />
Photo Credit: Andres Santamarta

During the days leading up to the competition, he practised with the 22-time Grand Slam champion. “To me Rafa is a role model. I’ve watched him for so many years, at the top for as long as I can remember. I’m very lucky and I hope I can learn something from him and apply it to my tennis, to my game,” he told ATPTour.com.

For Santamarta, the current No. 1308 in the PIF ATP Rankings, it was a masterclass. As well as sharing a locker room with Nadal at his farewell tournament, he did the same with the very player who is destined to continue his legacy, Carlos Alcaraz, along with Roberto Bautista Agut, Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martínez.

“I feel very lucky to have been able to share this moment with those five and with the whole team in general,” added Santamarta, who tried to be a sponge and absorb as many lessons as possible throughout the week.

The young player was unable to share any time on court with Alcaraz, who arrived in Malaga from the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin and did not have as long to prepare. However, it was not the first time the two had met.

Coincidentally, at last year’s Mutua Madrid Open they were champions in the event’s two men’s singles categories: ATP Masters 1000 (Alcaraz) and Under-16 (Santamarta). “Yes, we had our photo taken at the Mutua Madrid Open when he won. He congratulated me and, now that I think of it, he told me practically the same as Rafa, to keep going, that it’s a very long road.”

<img alt=”Andres Santamarta practises with Jannik Sinner at the Davis Cup Final 8 in Malaga.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/11/21/16/35/santamarta-sinner-davis-cup-2024-practice.jpg” />
Photo Credit: Andres Santamarta

Despite the fact that Spain’s journey at the Davis Cup came to an abrupt end in the quarter-finals, Santamarta’s adventure in Malaga continued into Wednesday. The Spaniard, who has five points in his PIF ATP Rankings account, was the man on the other side of the net as world No. 1 Jannik Sinner hit his first balls upon arrival at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena.

“But I was also happy because he’s the world No. 1 and I really wanted to share a practice session with him. I really loved it. I admire him.”

 

[ATP AWARDS]

Once on court, Santamarta forgot his nerves and, just as Nadal had advised a few days before, he enjoyed the opportunity. “I felt very comfortable,” he says. “The thing that really struck me was the intensity, the same as with Rafa. He’s a very relaxed guy, he doesn’t get annoyed, and he plays with such intensity. He misses and he’s already prepared for the next ball. The thing I like about Sinner is how he moves and his backhand.”

As a player at the GTennis Academy in his native Valencia, he had already practised with some elite players, but never of ‘this calibre’, as he put it.

“I’ve learned so much and I really like it, because it’s a good experience to hit balls and train with top players. I’m going to try and take the positives, what I’ve learned from them on and off the court.”

He has a wish: “I would like to start with real tennis, the ATP and all the tournaments with adults, where you can really see the experience. I hope I can adapt, because it’s a really big change, the tennis is very different, the way they play and think.”

Now, with so many memories, hope, desire and some priceless advice, he will return home to continue to make his way along that long road that lies ahead.

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Kokkinakis heroics vs. Shelton help Australia sink USA at Davis Cup

  • Posted: Nov 21, 2024

Is 2024 the year Australia finally returns to the Davis Cup winner’s circle?

The 28-time champion took a dramatic step towards its first title in the teams’ event since 2003 on Thursday with a thrilling 2-1 victory against the United States in Malaga. Australia, runner-up in 2022 and 2023, can look to a remarkable opening singles win by Thanasi Kokkinakis as the key to its quarter-final triumph.

Kokkinakis saved four match points and let slip six of his own before prevailing 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(14) against Ben Shelton in the opening match of the tie. It was a thrilling reward for captain Lleyton Hewitt, who selected the No. 77 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the No. 2 singles match despite him being the fourth-highest ranked player on Australia’s roster.

“Making a selection is never easy,” said Hewitt. “Thanasi played two incredible matches in Valencia for us only a couple of months ago. We kind of put him on ice until now and unleashed him today. He fully repaid us. That was fantastic.”

In a rematch of their Nitto ATP Finals group match from a week ago, Taylor Fritz took on Alex de Minaur in the No. 1 singles match. Just as he had in Turin, Fritz triumphed, earning a 6-3, 6-4 win to force a deciding doubles rubber. That effort later proved in vain, however, as Matthew Ebden and Jordan Thompson overcame Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton 6-4, 6-4 to send the Australian bench and its fans into raptures.

“Incredible. We got the break there at 4-4 [in the second set] and I could have run over the top of the whole bench there,” said Thompson. “I always wear my heart on my sleeve and bleed green and gold.”

Ebden and Thompson’s win came after United States’ captain Bob Bryan opted for a late change in his doubles lineup, with Paul and Shelton replacing Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram.

“We were expecting the other pair, but we knew they’ve got incredible players who can play doubles,” said Ebden. “We were ready. A slight adjustment obviously. More huge serving singles players than the doubles craft, maybe, but it was just as big a challenge as any. Out here, final live match, just to play with Jordan here was real fun. Following what Kokk did, unfortunately Alex went down, but what a day. So fun, so happy.”

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Australia will now prepare for a semi-final clash on Saturday against defending champion Italy, led by World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, or Argentina. If Hewitt and his team go on to lift the title on Sunday in Malaga, they will snap their country’s longest wait for a Davis Cup trophy (21 years) since its first triumph in 1907.

“We’ve got a rich history in this competition over well over 100 years, so these boys know all the great players that have been before them and it’s a great honour every time you get the chance to wear the green and gold out here,” said Hewitt. “We’ve had a very similar group of six guys that have really put their hands up the past three or four years now, and they’ve gelled together well.

“We’ve had to make slight adjustments at certain times because of injuries, and I’m just super proud of the whole team as a collective.”

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