logo
Defending champion Sinner storms into Cincinnati Open semi-finals

Defending champion Sinner storms into Cincinnati Open semi-finals

Reuters10 hours ago
Aug 14 (Reuters) - Defending champion Jannik Sinner swept past Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-0 6-2 on Thursday to reach the Cincinnati Open semi-finals, with the world number one extending his hardcourt winning streak to 25 matches.
Sinner delivered a dominant performance, capitalising on his opponent's 29 unforced errors to claim his first win in three meetings against the Canadian 23rd seed in just 71 minutes.
"Today I felt great on court. I think you saw that but every day is going to be different," Sinner said. "Tomorrow is a day off, which is good for me. We will try and put some reps in and then see what I can do in the semis."
The 23-year-old Italian became only the fifth man this century to record 25 consecutive victories on the surface alongside Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray.
He will next face French qualifier Terence Atmane, who continued his impressive run by upsetting Danish seventh seed Holger Rune 6-2 6-3.
"I don't think any words can describe how I feel right now," Atmane, 23, said. "It's pretty insane to be honest. I cannot believe it.
"Being here in the semi-finals of a Masters 1000, breaking into the Top 100 and even more with the win tonight — it's also a lot of money for me, so it's going to be very helpful for my career. It means a lot to me. I'm very emotional about it."
Canadian Open champion Ben Shelton advanced to the quarter-finals after beating Czech 22nd seed Jiri Lehecka 6-4 6-4.
"I'm hungry. I'm in a good rhythm," Shelton said. "I'm playing good tennis and my body feels good.
"I think the confidence along with not being satisfied, wanting to prove myself over and over every time that I'm out on the court, and having things that I want to get better at is a huge motivation for me and it pushes me every match."
Next up for the American fifth seed is German third seed Alexander Zverev.
In the women's draw, American second seed Coco Gauff secured her place in the quarter-finals with a 6-2 6-4 win over Italy's Lucia Bronzetti.
"For the most part I played aggressive. Maybe got a bit passive in some of those games. But it's tough. The balls are super light and they fly," Gauff said.
"She wasn't giving me much pace. I was trying to play with control but also aggressive. I think I did well. I missed a couple of balls. But I learned from it and was able to close it out."
The twice Grand Slam champion will next face another Italian, seventh seed Jasmine Paolini, who knocked out Barbora Krejcikova 6-1 6-2 in a rematch of the 2024 Wimbledon final, which the Czech won.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

New York Jets try out two new quarterbacks with reinforcements needed after latest injury blow
New York Jets try out two new quarterbacks with reinforcements needed after latest injury blow

Daily Mail​

time28 minutes ago

  • Daily Mail​

New York Jets try out two new quarterbacks with reinforcements needed after latest injury blow

While Justin Fields' spot as the Jets' starting quarterback is secure, an injury to his primary backup forced the team to try out two quarterbacks on Thursday. Veteran passer Tyrod Taylor is set to miss the remainder of training camp after undergoing a knee scope this week. The procedure was deemed 'minor' by head coach Aaron Glenn, though the former Lions defensive coordinator has been noncommittal on whether or not he'll be ready for Week 1 against the Steelers. 'Hopefully, he'll be ready for Week 1,' Glenn told reporters on Tuesday. With that uncertainty surrounding Taylor's status, the Jets brought in quarterbacks Nathan Peterman and C.J. Beathard for workouts on Thursday. Peterman, who was on the Falcons' practice squad last year, was a fifth-round pick in 2017 and has appeared in 15 games (five starts) in stints with the Bills, Raiders and Bears. Four of Peterman's starts came in Buffalo, where he actually competed with Taylor for the starting job during his rookie season. Beathard, meanwhile, ended last season with the Jaguars after being re-signed from the Dolphins' practice squad. The 2017 third-rounder has 32 career appearances (13 starts) in time with the 49ers and Jaguars, and made 10 starts for San Francisco in his first two seasons. Both he and Peterman have not seen the field since the 2023 season, for Jacksonville and Chicago respectively. The Jets also have quarterbacks Adrian Martinez and Brady Cook listed as third and fourth respectively on their depth chart. Nonetheless, Fields seems to be entrenched as the team's starter after signing a two-year, $40million contract with the team in free agency. He went 4-2 in six starts last season for the Steelers and flashed his incredible rushing ability, but he was ultimately replaced by Russell Wilson - who was always meant to be the starter but missed time with a calf injury. Now, Wilson is also in New York with the Giants as both look to hit the ground running with their new teams. Fields and the Jets will host Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers on September 7.

‘I am tough' – Emma Raducanu on legacy of her US Open win, stalking ordeal and why therapy won't help her
‘I am tough' – Emma Raducanu on legacy of her US Open win, stalking ordeal and why therapy won't help her

The Guardian

time28 minutes ago

  • The Guardian

‘I am tough' – Emma Raducanu on legacy of her US Open win, stalking ordeal and why therapy won't help her

For four arduous years, so much of Emma Raducanu's life has played out in public. Every decision relating to her career has been dissected and debated. The most banal details surrounding her personal life have been transfigured into headline news. In order to find herself on and off the tennis court, Raducanu has had to learn how to tune out the noise, which at times can be deafening. Only one month ago at Wimbledon, the discourse surrounding the 22-year-old reached diabolical lows. Even though her on-court performances were strong, it was impossible to escape the speculation surrounding her personal life. In the bowels of center court at the Cincinnati Open, I offer my own blunt perspective: I have never cringed as much as I did while watching people trying to pry into her romantic relationships at the All England Club. 'Yeah, and Cam's questions, too,' Raducanu responds, laughing. 'That was terrible. Terrible.' Raducanu was referring to her compatriot Cameron Norrie's post-match press conference, when a reporter asked him whether he was dating Raducanu. Norrie, who was being supported in his player box that day by his long-term partner, was as baffled as he was bemused. For Raducanu, though, such brazen intrusiveness from strangers has simply become part of her everyday life. 'I know, I know,' she says, smiling. 'I guess I'm like, it comes with the territory, people being so curious. I think they're more curious about this news than any tennis results and tennis news. But I just keep myself to myself, my private life to one side. It's always funny when people try to find something out, but I try not to read into it so much.' That curiosity is not isolated to the internet and tabloids. When Raducanu is out in London, paparazzi photographers will find her, even when she is doing nothing more than stepping on to a 345 bus somewhere in Wandsworth. 'It's really freaky, because you don't know that they're there. And then you'll see a photo of yourself the next day, and you'll be like: 'There's no way they were there,'' she says. Considering her well-documented encounters with stalkers – one was arrested and handed a five-year restraining order after stealing items from her front door in 2021 and another fixated person followed her across four different countries earlier this year – Raducanu has genuine concerns regarding her safety: 'I think after the Dubai incident, that was probably the worst [public attention] I've had,' she says. 'I remember straight afterwards, I found it very difficult going out. I definitely had a bit of a leftover lag effect. But I've been a lot more astute, a lot more, I'd say, safe and have someone with me. I don't really go out on my own as much. No solo walks. Just always having someone watching my back.' Everything leads back to those three fateful weeks at the US Open in the summer of 2021, where Raducanu became the first qualifier to win a grand slam title. The spoils of victory were significant but Raducanu's rapid success yielded considerable challenges. Along with the difficult results and constant criticism, her body constantly betrayed her. In 2023, after struggling physically for a long time, she underwent surgeries on both wrists and her left ankle. While she tried to prove herself on the court, Raducanu says, people within her team would tell her she wasn't tough: 'I was obviously like: 'Oh, no, I am tough enough.'' says Raducanu. 'And it wasn't good to hear, because I always prided myself on being a hard worker and being tough. And I believe I am. I actually think it was more the people around me that were maybe incorrect, and I think it led me down to having three surgeries and double wrist surgery, because I was overtraining and just covering it up, not saying anything, and not saying I was in pain, even when I was. So it was really tough to hear. But I think as I've grown with experience, I kind of realised my body a bit more and trusted myself a bit more.' Mentally, things were even more challenging. As she failed to follow up her breakthrough victory with similar results, there were times when her mind twisted her US Open triumph into a negative memory, the source of her struggles. It was not until this year that she understood how to focus on her improvement and daily work, however gradual, rather than comparing every result to the 2021 US Open. Still, it remains a work in progress. 'It's [comparisons to the US Open] something that never fully leaves you,' Raducanu says. 'I think it's been four years now, I don't think it's fully gone away. Maybe in a few years, maybe when I'm older, more mature, but it's hard to put that aside completely. It's always in the back of your mind, but it's more just being aware of those thoughts and then not letting it crash your day or ruin the work that you're doing, and bringing it back to what I'm doing now, and the process.' Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Considering her many difficulties, an obvious question is whether sports psychology or therapy have been a part of her life over the past few years: 'I've tried. I've tried,' she says. 'I've been obviously recommended a lot to do it with what I went through. It was something that not many people, well, actually no one has gone through, which is probably the reason that I did like two sessions and I stopped. I was like: 'Look, these guys, they don't relate.' And, to be honest, no other athlete has done what I've done, so I don't know why I'm taking advice from them. So I was like: 'OK, well, the only person who can help me is myself.'' For a long time the four defining cities of Raducanu's life were listed in her biographies across her social media platforms. Her parents, Ion and Renee, originally come from Bucharest, Romania, and Shenyang, China, respectively while she was born in Toronto, Canada, and grew up in London, England. Her mother's solo immigration from China to Canada has been an inspirational tale throughout her life. 'I would say it's funny when people ask where you're from,' she says. 'Obviously, I feel British. I've always grown up there, But there are certain things, the way I think, I don't think I am completely. So you have a little question about your identity. But I try not to read too much into it and try to just take the best from all the different worlds that I've been exposed to and grown up in.' Regardless of the subject at hand, Raducanu frequently notes the support and significance of her parents. She describes her upbringing as rigid and strict, but their tough love has made her the person she is today: 'I was always brought up with really high standards, high expectations of myself, not much sympathy,' says Raducanu. 'So when I was younger, that was tough, and even now. But I think it really shaped me to be the player I am, the person I am; pretty down to earth. They never got impressed by anything glitzy or high or anything.' Both Raducanu's parents worked in finance and they passed on their numerical, logical mindsets. Over the past few years, however, part of her evolution as an adult has been understanding herself as a person. Her injury layoff in 2023, which initially seemed like a catastrophe, turned out to be essential for her personal development. Raducanu spent her time away from tennis travelling, including a long trip to China, trying different hobbies and gradually learning more about herself. She learned that she is also creative, which has significantly influenced her playing style on the court. 'I kind of discovered the more artistic side – the piano, the painting, the reading, the philosophy, all of those things,' she says. 'And I really think it opened my eyes to another world. Now I'm kind of seeing how I can find an area where those two intersect, and have the creative side, but also have the quantitative side.' With age and experience, Raducanu also has a greater understanding of her preferences when making general decisions. While discussing her decision making, Raducanu's mind shifts to another source of criticism: her coaching history. 'I think I'm a lot more clear on what I do and don't like,' she says. 'I think the experiences that I've had with different coaches – people love to say I've had so many different coaches but, if I went into the details of a lot of them, people would not be kind of saying the same things. I just don't do that, because I don't want to 'out' these people. So keep it to myself.' Is it ever tempting? 'I would say, like, when you see things and you're like: 'Oh, Emma on her ninth coach' or something, I'm like: 'Guys, come on.' Certain ones don't count. If you've had a trial, you don't have to carry on after the trial. A few have been trials, a few have been other situations. And I just try and take the high road,' she says. Then she laughs. 'And try to do what the royal family would do.' After years of rolling with the punches and gradually coming to understand herself, Raducanu seems to finally be in a positive place again. She speaks effusively about the great enjoyment she has found in her consistent daily work and she has thrown herself into becoming the best player she can be each day. Raducanu's results are reflective of that shift and her ranking is clearly on the rise. Her time in Cincinnati, her first week with her new coach, Francisco Roig, ended with a colossal three-hour battle with Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, where she narrowly lost 7-6 in the final set. Over the next few days, she will return to New York for the US Open more self-assured than she has been since she won the title. Our second conversation ends with a final question on Raducanu's ambitions for the next few years beyond her results. After a beat, she shrugs. The hope, she says, is that the passion and joy she now feels each day about her daily work will endure. 'I want to continue for the next few years, to just keep enjoying because I would rather not do anything else or be anywhere else,' she says, shrugging. 'I see my friends, like, somewhere in the south of France, and they're chilling on a boat or whatever, and I'm just like: 'OK, well, it looks amazing,' but when I'm putting in double session practices with the people around laughing, that fills me up so much more. So I'm really happy to have gotten to this place and [I want] to just continue that.'

Jannik Sinner breaks his silence on controversial re-hiring of coach blamed for world No1's failed drugs test - with Wimbledon winner VERY unwilling to discuss doping ban in awkward press conference
Jannik Sinner breaks his silence on controversial re-hiring of coach blamed for world No1's failed drugs test - with Wimbledon winner VERY unwilling to discuss doping ban in awkward press conference

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

Jannik Sinner breaks his silence on controversial re-hiring of coach blamed for world No1's failed drugs test - with Wimbledon winner VERY unwilling to discuss doping ban in awkward press conference

Jannik Sinner has defended his decision to reappoint Umberto Ferrara as his fitness coach - one year after parting company amid his doping case. Ferrara and physio Giacomo Naldi were fired by Sinner last August, five months after he twice tested positive for a trace amount of the anabolic steroid Clostebol. Sinner was initially cleared by an independent tribunal, but the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed against the decision. In February 2025, it was then announced that while the positive drugs tests was due to inadvertent contamination, Sinner was to serve a three-month suspension. Sinner won the US and Australia Open titles while the case had been ongoing, while he returned from his ban in May and went on to reach the final of the French Open, before winning Wimbledon. The world No1 shocked many last month by announcing Ferrara would return to his team, after splitting with trainer Marco Panichi and physiotherapist Ulises Badio before Wimbledon. Ferrara, left, has returned to the world No 1's camp at the ongoing Cincinnati Open When announcing Ferrara and Naldi's dismissal last year, Sinner had claimed he was 'not feeling that confident to continue with them', citing 'mistakes' that he led to his doping case. Sinner had claimed in his case that he had been exposed to the banned substance Clostebol, due to a massage from Naldi. Ferrara was said to have purchased a product in Italy and gave it to the physio to treat a cut on his hand. The massage on Sinner subsequently took place when Naldi wasn't wearing gloves. Speaking at a press conference at the Cincinnati Open, Sinner was pressed on Ferrara's re-hiring which had highlighted his role in his development and cited a 'renewed focus on continuity and performance at the highest level'. 'It was a different situation, everything is different now,' Sinner said when asked by Bounces whether he had regretted parting ways with Ferrara last year. 'I felt like, in this moment, I need someone who knows my body a little bit more, because - but we said everything in the statement, so it's all good.' When asked by journalist Ben Rothenberg what he meant by 'knowing his body', Sinner responded: 'We worked together since, two years, before this happened? His work gave me a lot of benefits. 'We worked a lot in every department of my body: with mobility and stability, and also the wind of my body was getting better. So yeah, I feel like that he did a great job. 'Also, [with] Marco [Panichi], I felt great, but maybe it was not the right thing. And yeah. So I felt always good with Umberto.' Sinner then said 'I don't know' when questioned about whether he understood why people were surprised by his decision to reappoint Ferrara given his public explanation for their split last year. Ferrara had served as the fitness coach of Sinner's compatriot Matteo Berrettini between January and June, before parting ways after six months. Sinner's doping case had become public knowledge shortly after his victory at the Cincinnati Open last year. The world No 1 offered a guarded response when asked about whether he had memories or flashbacks from last year. Sinner initially remained silent when asked the question, before responding 'Uh, no. Not really' when quizzed for the second time. The defending champion remains on course to retain his title in Cincinnati having reached the semi-finals, with the Italian set to face the tournament's surprise package Terence Atmane in the last four.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store