Jannik Sinner played well in his first match at the ATP Finals in Turin. The defending champion bested Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-5, 6-1 in an hour and 40 minutes for a winning start.
The Canadian fought well in the opener. However, he experienced a calf injury which ruined his chances. Sinner provided a late break in the opener and dominated set number two to seal the deal in style.
Ivan Ljubicic praised the Italian's performance. As he noted, Jannik targeted Felix's backhand and used that attack to open the court. The Croat thought that you can not take more than four or five games against the Italian even if you perform at your best.
The home favorite did not lose a point behind the first serve in the first set. He ended the duel after giving away only ten points in his games, facing no break points and keeping the pressure on the other side.
He took 45% of the return points and turned them into three breaks from ten opportunities to emerge at the top. Sinner hit 16 winners and 13 unforced errors. Auger-Aliassime sprayed over 30 mistakes and lost the ground from the baseline.
The Canadian denied two break points in the sixth game of the match with winners. He saved a set point at 4-5 with a service winner and extended the battle. However, Felix experienced that calf injury in the 12th game.
He missed a slice and lost serve, allowing Jannik to claim the opener 7-5 in 58 minutes. Auger-Aliassime sprayed a forehand error in the second game of the second set to drop serve and fall behind.
Sinner held after a deuce for 3-0 and created more break points in the next one. Felix saved them with service winners and remained within one break deficit.
The Italian held at 15 for 4-1 and grabbed another break a few minutes later. Jannik served for the win at 5-1 and fired an ace on a match point to emerge at the top in style.
"Jannik's tactical solution was to focus on Felix's backhand. He did that a lot with a wide serve that opened the court for him. Watching the match, I thought that you can not win games against him if you are at 97%.
If you perform at your best, you can collect four or five games," Ivan Ljubicic said.
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.
