Jannik Sinner ended the inspired run of teenage home favourite Rafael Jodar with a 6-2, 7-6 (0) victory at the Madrid Open on Wednesday. The world No.1 thus completed his set of semi-finals reached at all nine Masters 1000 tournaments.
Jodar's Meteoric Rise
The 19-year-old Jodar has taken the tour by storm this clay season, winning a maiden ATP title in Marrakesh and making the semi-finals in Barcelona and the quarter-finals in Madrid before being stopped by Sinner at the Caja Mágica. This time last year, Jodar was playing college tennis for the University of Virginia and was ranked No. 687 in the world. He will crack the top 35 when the new rankings are released on Monday.
A Hard-Fought Match
Sinner was seriously tested before extending his current winning streak to 21 consecutive matches. The first-set scoreline may have read 6-2, but it was far from a routine affair. Sinner faced a young opponent who could match his firepower, particularly on the forehand wing. The Italian was tested in multiple service games, including a marathon one at 2-2, and had to save a pair of break points before taking a one-set lead in 44 minutes.
Leaning on the rowdy home support, Jodar skirted danger at the start of the second set and put pressure on the Sinner serve. However, despite his best efforts, Jodar could not convert any of the five break points he created as Sinner levelled for 4-4. The set went to a tiebreak, which was dominated by Sinner, who won the last 11 points of the match to advance to his first Madrid semi-final.
Upcoming Semi-Finals
The Italian will face Arthur Fils on Friday after the Frenchman beat Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-4 in their last-eight clash. Meanwhile, in the women's draw, lucky loser Anastasia Potapova reached the first WTA 1000 semi-final of her career with a hard-fought 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-3 performance against former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova.
The world No. 56, who knocked out Elena Rybakina and Jelena Ostapenko in the previous two rounds, will take on Marta Kostyuk in the last-four match after the Ukrainian defeated Linda Noskova 7-6 (1), 6-0 in their evening quarter-final. Having recently switched allegiance from Russia to Austria, Potapova is the first player representing Austria to reach a WTA 1000 semi-final, and the first lucky loser to make it this far at a tournament of this level.
“It feels great, I wouldn’t lie,” said the 25-year-old. “I’ve been given a second chance, and I’ve been using it very good. It actually can happen in tennis, so that’s why I think it’s one of the most beautiful sports we have. If I was given it, maybe I deserve it, so, yeah, I’m very happy.”
