Jannik Sinner was brilliant and convincing during his first match at the Beijing ATP 500, having dropped only four games to Croatian veteran Marin Cilic to show that he has completely metabolized the defeat against Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open final about 20 days ago. The current world No.2 has been working on different aspects of his game with his team in recent weeks and has focused mainly on his serve, which had been insufficient during the last Major of the season in New York.
The 24-year-old from Sesto Pusteria used this shot very well yesterday and never allowed the former US Open champion to command rallies from baseline, but it is clear that more probing tests will be needed to assess the real improvements of the former world number 1.
The four-time Grand Slam champion is having an excellent season, although he has not been able to play official tournaments for three months due to the ban he was given by WADA. He won two Major titles in 2025 respectively in Australia and London becoming the first Italian in history to lift the trophy at the Wimbledon Championships.
Sinner is in excellent shape
In this last part of the season, Jannik will try to win as many titles as possible and defend the points obtained in 2024. The Nitto ATP Finals in Turin is certainly his main goal, as he will be able to play in front of his home fans and try to repeat last year's amazing run.
By beating Cilic yesterday in the Chinese capital, Sinner achieved his 24th victory against a Grand Slam champion, surpassing his huge rival Carlitos Alcaraz who stopped at 23 victories in this special ranking.
The Italian star's next fight will be against French ace Terence Atmane tomorrow. The latter is having the best season of his career and has already faced Jannik in the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters 1000 this summer, putting the Italian in trouble especially in the first set. The winner of this match will earn a place in the quarterfinals in the Chinese capital.
