Jannik Sinner followed the example of Iga Swiatek as the pair of Cincinnati Masters top seeds put the brakes on poor starts to roll into the semi-finals on Saturday.
Both top-seeded world No. 1 players managed their turnarounds efficiently to stay alive in the last big event prior to the start of the US Open in eight days.
Swiatek had to work for her first career place in the final four here as she got past teenaged Mirra Andreeva 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.
Sinner took his revenge against Andry Rublev after a loss in Montreal at this same stage a week ago. The Italian managed a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 defeat of the sixth seed whose reserves were running low after reaching Monday’s Montreal final.
Swiatek broke her 17-year-old opponent in the penultimate game of their quarter-final to finally earn victory after two and a half hours, winning her 30th match this season at the WTA 1000 level.
The Pole stands 53-6 for the season, with 25 hardcourt wins on one of her least favourite surfaces.
“It was a tight match. Every point matters at the end. It was not easy for sure,” she said. We were both kind of rusty at the beginning of the third set.”
Swiatek takes on third seed Aryna Sabalenka after she defeated Liudmila Samsonova 6-3, 6-2 and earned her third straight Cincy semi-final.
.”I’m really happy to get this win in straight sets. It wasn’t as easy as it looks from the score point of view. It was a tough one,” said sabalenka who returns to second in the world on Monday.,
Swiatek said that a change of tactics worked well for her in overcoming Andreeva. “I knew I could not play in the same way. I needed to put more pressure on her.
“I played more proactive and had a better idea of what I needed to do.”
Against Rublev, Sinner was playing only his second match of the week after a first-round bye and a third-round walkover.
The Italian who turned 23 on Friday took the win in a third set riddled with five service breaks in 10 games.
A gusty wind caught his match point ball and blew it out of Rublev’s reach to end the match.
“There was a lot of mental strength required today,” Sinner said. “It was tough conditions, very, very windy
“In the first set I didn’t play my best tennis, in the second I improved and was able to wait for my chances. “I was happy to win today.”
Main photo:- Jannik Sinner winning quarter final match in Cincy by ATPTour.com
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