Sinner seals QF spot with another Beijing comeback

Jannik Sinner’s steely resilience has been on full display so far this week at the China Open.

The No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings on Saturday notched his second consecutive comeback win at this year’s edition of the ATP 500 in Beijing. Sinner rallied past Roman Safiullin 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 to maintain his record of having reached at least the quarter-finals at every tour-level event he has played in 2024.

After coming from a set down to oust Nicolas Jarry in the opening round, Sinner again found himself in trouble in the Chinese capital after the free-hitting Safiullin broke serve twice en route to the opening set. Yet the top seed responded emphatically to seal a two-hour, 22-minute triumph on the Capital Group Diamond Court.

“A tough match. He’s an incredible player and we always have tough battles,” said Sinner. “This was our third encounter, so we know each other a bit. He returns very well, and he was serving well at important moments. So I tried to keep up mentally, which today was very tough.

“Especially on these kinds of days, when maybe you don’t feel at your 100 per cent, to find a way through means so much to me. He’s an incredible player, so I knew I had to raise my level when it counted.”

Comeback complete ✔️@janniksin advances into the quarter-finals at #ChinaOpen ⚡️@ChinaOpen pic.twitter.com/9tQ7bGQv5c

Sinner’s raw power and consistency from the baseline gradually wore down his opponent, and the Italian won seven straight games from 2-2 in the second set to take control of the second-round encounter. Sinner finished the match having converted four of 13 break points he earned against Safiullin, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

With his 57th tour-level triumph of 2024, Sinner tied Alexander Zverev for the most victories this season. The next challenge for the Italian in Beijing will be a last-eight meeting with Jiri Lehecka, who earlier overcame Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.

Saturday’s victory was another small step towards becoming ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF for Sinner. He is the runaway leader in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, in which his current advantage over second-placed Zverev stands at 2,985 points.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]