World number one Jannik Sinner held off 19-year-old wildcard Rafael Jodar to win 6-2 7-6(0) in the Madrid Open quarter-finals on Wednesday, becoming the sixth player to reach the semi-finals of all nine ATP 1000 Masters tournaments.
Sinner saved five break points in the second set and won 11 points in a row to secure victory over the Spaniard.
“He pushed me to the limit, he’s an incredible player… I’m incredibly happy, it’s been a very high quality match,” Sinner said in his post-match interview.
The 24-year-old Italian produced a disciplined performance in the first set, breaking the local favourite twice to take a 5-2 lead, before sealing the set with a fierce backhand.
Jodar, who won his first tour title in Morocco this month, threatened to pull 4-2 ahead in the second set, but Sinner saved two break points to stay level at 3-3.
A double fault from the Italian put Jodar on the verge of another break, but Sinner saved three break points with a strong crosscourt forehand and two backhand winners that brushed the sideline.
Sinner went 40-15 up in the next game but Jodar saved three break points before taking it.
Sinner, chasing his second claycourt title this season after winning the Monte-Carlo Masters, dominated the tiebreak and sealed victory with a forehand that Jodar could not reach.
He will next face Arthur Fils, who beat Jiri Lehecka 6-3 6-4 later in the day, extending his winning streak to nine matches. The 21st seed became the first Frenchman to reach the semi-finals in Madrid since 2009, avenging his recent Miami Open loss to Lehecka with a dominant, 74-minute performance in which he did not face a single break point.
Like Sinner, Fils remains undefeated on clay this season, building on his triumph at the Barcelona Open earlier this month.
(Reuters)
