Jannik Sinner started his ATP Finals title defense with a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Felix Auger-Aliassime. The home favorite sealed the deal in an hour and 40 minutes, extending his winning streak in Turin and keeping his year-end no. 1 chances alive.
Felix fought well in the opening set. However, he injured his left leg and required a medical timeout. He struggled in the second set and finished on the losing side in his first ATP Finals match since 2022.
Jannik dropped ten points in his games and faced no break points. The finest indoor player on the Tour stole 45% of the return points and generated ten break points, providing three breaks to emerge at the top.
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World no. 2 landed 16 winners and 13 unforced errors. He tamed his strokes nicely and welcomed 33 mistakes from the other side. The Italian led 25-20 in service winners and dominated the baseline.
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Felix stayed in touch in the more advanced rallies. However, he struggled in the quickest exchanges, losing the match in that segment. While Sinner served well in the opener, Auger-Aliassime faced issues in the sixth game.
He saved two break points and remained on the positive side. The Canadian denied a set point at 4-5 and extended the battle. However, his left leg bothered him, and Jannik provided a late break at 6-5 to wrap up the opener in just under an hour.
Felix felt pressure in his games in the second set. He got broken in the second game to extend the negative streak. Sinner missed break points in the fourth game before delivering another break at 4-1.
The Italian served for the win at 5-1 and landed an ace down the T line to seal the deal and make a winning start.
