(Tennis news) Sinner defeated Yannick Hanfmann in straight sets to advance to a matchup with fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego in the second round. The 22-year-old scored first in the first set to take a 3-1 lead and held on to the advantage to win the match.
In order to win the second set, Sinner upped the ante by breaking Sonego’s serve twice. The former was in complete control of the match at this point, and one service break in his favour in the third set enabled him to win 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.
In the meanwhile, Wawrinka defeated Yoshihito Nishioka to advance to the second round, where he faced Tomas Martin Etcheverry, the 30th seed. After taking control of the tie-break, the Swiss won a closely contested first set.
Wawrinka had a set point in the second set but ultimately dropped it in the tie-break. The former US Open champion recovered easily and regained the initiative in the following set. For the remainder of the match, he outperformed Etcheverry, winning 7-6 (6), 6-7 (7), 6-3, and 6-2.
Head-to-Head
Wawrinka is down 3-2 in the head-to-head matchup versus Sinner. At the 2023 Indian Wells Masters, the Italian triumphed in their most recent meeting in straight sets.
Predictions
Wawrinka initially had the advantage in his rivalry with Sinner since he triumphed in their first several encounters, including one at the US Open. The Swiss veteran has now been defeated three times by the youthful Italian, who has since reversed the situation.
Sinner has easily won their most recent two matchups, losing only four and five games in their clashes in Rotterdam and Indian Wells, respectively. Only twice during those two matches did Wawrinka succeed in breaking the 22-year-old’s serve.
Wawrinka won’t have it easy because Sinner hasn’t dropped a serve yet this week. In the previous round against Sonego, the Italian only dropped 10 points when serving.
Since he first met Wawrinka, Sinner has made great progress in both his ball striking and overall gameplay. The youthful player should be able to defeat the three-time Grand Slam champion to move on in the tournament given the form he showed in his opening few encounters.
Jannik Sinner to win in 5 sets (3-2).
