Sinner beats De Minaur to take Rotterdam title

Jannik Sinner continued his perfect start to 2024 by beating Alex de Minaur in straight sets to win the ABN Amro Open in Rotterdam.

The top-seeded Italian, playing in his second successive Rotterdam final, struck at key moments in a competitive contest to seal a 7-5 6-4 win that took just beyond two hours.

Including the run that took him to his maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January, Sinner has now won 15 successive tour-level matches.

Sinner hit 23 winners and prevailed despite wasting a break advantage in both sets.

“I am really proud with the level that I played throughout this whole week,” Sinner said.

Image: Sinner has won 15 successive tour-level matches

“We have been in tough situations but we handled it the right way. We will always try to improve, it is the most important.”

The 22-year-old will move up to No 3 in the world rankings on Monday, which will be the highest position ever occupied by an Italian man.

Sinner extended his perfect record against De Minaur to 7-0, but the Australian will also move up to a career-high ranking of No 9 on Monday.

Local favourite Diaz Acosta wins Argentina Open

Facundo Diaz Acosta defeated Nicolas Jarry in straight sets in Buenos Aires to win the Argentina Open on Sunday.

Jarry could not maintain the form that had seen him upset Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-final, while Diaz Acosta shrugged of the pressure of competing in his first ATP Tour final in front of his home crowd to record a 6-3 6-4 victory.

Jarry made Diaz Acosta work hard to hold serve in the first game of the match, but the Argentine surged on from there. He got the first break in the fourth game and, with errors littering Jarry’s game, won the first set.

Argentina's Facundo Diaz Acosta celebrates a point during an Argentina Open ATP final tennis match against Chile's Nicolas Jarry,at Guillermo Vilas Stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Gustavo Garello)
Image: Argentina’s Facundo Diaz Acosta celebrates a point during the Argentina Open final

Diaz Acosta sliced a return of serve out of the air that sailed past Jarry to earn the Argentine a break in the first game of the second set.

However Jarry’s resistance got more and more determined. He prevented Diaz Acosta from capitalising on a sequence of championship points in the 10th game of the second set. Jarry had his opponent under pressure with a break point of his own.

But Diaz Acosta would not be denied. In a long rally, with Diaz Acosta on his sixth championship point, Jarry struck the ball too long and the local favourite won the title.

Delray Open final delayed

Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul, meanwhile, will have to wait a bit longer to determine the winner of the Delray Beach Open in Florida after rain forced organisers to postpone Sunday’s final between the respective first and third seeds until Monday.

Fritz is the defending champion at the Delray Beach Open, while fellow American Paul is on a seven-match winning streak.

How to watch on Sky Sports Tennis

Sky Sports has confirmed a new home for tennis in the UK and Ireland, with Sky Sports Tennis on Sky and NOW, making tennis content available all day, every day for fans.

Sky Sports will broadcast more live tennis than anywhere else, bringing over 4,000 matches from more than 80 tournaments a year on the ATP and WTA Tours, as well as full coverage of the US Open, all exclusively live.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Find out all the ways to watch tennis on Sky Sports, including the US Open, ATP and WTA tours

Non-Sky subscribers can stream live matches with a NOW Sports Day and Month Membership, via Sky Sports Tennis, Sky Sports Arena, and Sky Sports Mix channels.

For further access, fans will also be able to follow their favourite players and gain deeper insights from both Tours via Sky Sports News, the Sky Sports app, on SkySports.com and via Sky Sports social channels.

Get Sky Sports on WhatsApp!

Sky Sports WhatsApp channel

You can now start receiving messages and alerts for the latest breaking sports news, analysis, in-depth features and videos from our dedicated WhatsApp channel!

Find out more here

Watch the WTA and ATP Tours throughout 2024 on Sky Sports Tennis. Stream tennis and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership

Source : Sky Sports