Sinner reaches Miami Open final
MIAMI: Former junior skiing champion Jannik Sinner has joined some fast company at the Miami Open. The 19-year-old Italian became the fourth teenager to reach the Miami men's final. The others: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andre Agassi.
Sinner, who chose tennis over skiing at age 13, is playing in only his third top-level ATP event. He rallied in the semifinal to beat Spanish counterpuncher Roberto Bautista Agut, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
Sinner will next face No. 26-seeded Hubert Hurkacz of Poland, who advanced to his first ATP Masters 1000 final by beating No. 4 Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-4. Hurkacz, 24, improved to 9-0 in Florida this year, including his second career ATP title in Delray Beach in January.
"It's nice, but it doesn't mean anything," Sinner said. "The road to have a big name is long. It's not done in one week of a tournament."
"We knew many players were not coming here, especially the big three," Sinner said. "I have a good team, and we approached this tournament to go very, very far."
The lanky Sinner, seeded 21st, has improved his ranking from 78th at the start of last year. He created a buzz by reaching the quarterfinals in his French Open debut in September and is projected to climb to at least No. 24 next week. Agencies