BOLZANO. Jannik Sinner seems to have finally found the right mood at the “Citi Open”, ATP 500 tournament with a prize pool of 1,895. 290 dollars starting the final stages on the hard courts in Washington DC The 19 year old from Sesto Pusteria, 24 in the ranking and fifth seeded, entered the race directly in the second round by beating the Finnish Emil Ruusuvuori, n. 69 ATP, and repeated in the round of 16 against the American Sebastian Korda, n.45 in the ranking, in the late evening Italian settled in the quarterfinals for 6-4 6-2, in an hour and eleven minutes of the game, the American Steve Johnson, 81 of the ranking. The South Tyrolean had won the only precedent with the 31-year-old Californian from Orange, who played in the first round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in 2019. The American had to save two consecutive breakpoints already in the third game but in the fifth he gave up the service to the South Tyrolean who then took advantage of it to extend to 4-2. In the eighth game Jannik canceled a break point that if used would have allowed Johnson to return but in the tenth the blue Next Gen filed the first set. In the second half in the second game a small moment of difficulty for Jannik forced to recover from 15-40 with the 19 year old from Sesto Pusteria who not only saved that game but put five consecutive in a row, snatching Johnson’s joke twice (5 -1). The Californian stopped the bleeding (5-2) but Sinner closed 6-2 in the second match-point on Johnson’s backhand cut into the net.
On Saturday in the semifinals he challenges all Next Gen with Jenson Brooksby, n.130 in the ranking thanks to a wild card. For the 20-year-old from Sacramento, California, who hasn’t lost a set so far, this is the first time in the penultimate act in an ATP 500. There is no precedent between Sinner and Brooksby.