Stefanos Tsitsipas secured a place in the Barcelona Open Final with a 2-0 set victory over Italian youngster Jannik Sinner.
The second-seeded Greek appeared to have all the time in the world, never allowing Sinner an opportunity to get into the match.
It took just one hour and 13 minutes for him to overcome Sinner, winning 6-3, 6-3 as the teenager failed to make of the break point opportunities he had against the Greek.
🎾 Primer set per Tsitsipas! @bcnopenbs @janniksin 3⃣@steftsitsipas 6⃣
🔴 EN DIRECTE!
📺 @esport3
💻📱 https://t.co/nCFyBKJxOA pic.twitter.com/nI2OYDfDO9— Esport3 (@esport3) April 24, 2021
Défaite Sinner ! Après un très beau tournoi, Jannik s'incline en demi finale contre le joueur du moment Tsitsipas, 6-3 6-3 en 1h23. Défaite logique de Jannik, qui aura été très en difficulté sur son service. Jannik monte à la 18eme place mondiale !!! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/EIxnNa4tRI
— SinnerFrance (@SinnerFrance) April 24, 2021
On Sunday, Tsitsipas will face either Rafael Nadal or Pablo Carreno Busta and joked in a post-match interview that he would learn Spanish in time for next year if he wins this tournament and also in Madrid next week.
“It feels great to be back in the final,” he said, reflecting on his 2018 loss to Nadal in Barcelona’s showpiece event.
“It was a learning experience for me playing the first final against Rafa. He’s someone I really respect and I’ve always dreamed of beating. The fact I was able to do it this year pushes me even further. I feel I need experiences like this to push me forward in my career.”
Sinner is the youngest Barcelona semi-finalist since 2005, when 18-year-old Rafael Nadal won the first of his 11 Barcelona titles.
Last week, Tsitsipas won the final of Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, also beating sixth seed Andrey Rublev in straight sets (6-3, 6-3).
Appearing in his third final at that level, Tsitsipas dropped just four points behind his first serve (24/28) to capture the second biggest title of his career after 71 minutes.
From talented junior to Masters 1000 champion 😍
The Tsitsipas journey has only just begun…@steftsitsipas #RolexMCMasters pic.twitter.com/H8bBWgvMfN
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 18, 2021
Tsitsipas the youngest player ranked in the top 10
Tsitsipas is the youngest player ranked in the top 10 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and has a career-high ranking of No. 5 in the world, making him the highest-ranked Greek player in history.
Tsitsipas was the champion at the 2019 ATP Finals, becoming the youngest winner of the year-end championships in eighteen years. He has won five singles titles and reached ten finals on the ATP Tour.
Born into a tennis family where his mother Julia Apostoli was a professional on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) tour and his father was trained as a tennis coach, Tsitsipas was introduced to the sport at age three and began taking lessons at age six.
As a junior, he was ranked No. 1 in the world. He also became the third Greek player, and first Greek male in the Open Era, to win a junior Grand Slam title with a victory in the 2016 Wimbledon boys’ doubles event.
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