World No. 1 Jannik Sinner advanced to his first career US Open final on Friday by defeating No. 25 seed Jack Draper in straight sets, 7-5 7-6(3) 6-2, but the match was far from straightforward. The second set, won by Sinner in a tiebreak, was nearly an hour and a half long, and finished as the second-longest set played all tournament.
After the match, Sinner talked about the physicality of the matchup with one of his good friends, according to Howard Fendrich of the Associated Press.
“It was a very physical match, as we see,” Sinner admitted after the match. “I just tried to stay there mentally.”
Sinner, who will be playing for his second Grand Slam title of the year on Sunday, suffered a bit of an injury scare during the marathon second set. In the midst of one of the craziest rallies of the match (which he ended up winning), the Italian fell awkwardly on his left wrist and was shaking it out for a couple of games afterward. He wad treated by the trainer at the next changeover, and was able to recover and put the match away.
Draper leaves the US Open following his first career major semifinal and his best career Grand Slam result. He will rise to No. 20 in the world rankings that are released on Monday.
Americans to contest men's and women's US Open finals
For the first time since 2002, the United States will have both a man and a woman competing for the US Open title on finals weekend in the same year.
Jessica Pegula, the daughter of Buffalo Bills and Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula, will be up first on Saturday in her first career Grand Slam final. Pegula defeated Karolina Muchova in a huge comeback effort on Thursday night, 1-6 6-4 6-2, to advance to the final for the first time. Pegula will be a sizable underdog against No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka, who won the Australian Open earlier this season on hard courts. However, the American has been on fire lately. Pegula has now won 14 out of her last 15 matches since returning from the Olympics, including taking home a big WTA 1000 title in Toronto.
On Sunday, it will be Taylor Fritz who takes the stage for his first major final against top seed Jannik Sinner. Fritz took command of Arthur Ashe Stadium on Friday night when he defeated fellow American Frances Tiafoe in a five-set thriller, winning the fourth and fifth sets to notch his best career major result. With the win, Fritz confirmed that he will move back into the world's top 10 on Monday after spending most of the season just outside of it. He will slot in at No. 6 if he wins the final and No. 7 if he loses.
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