Sinner battles past Griekspoor at Halle Open for first win as world No 1
The Italian won 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-2 in his opening match of the grass-court season. He’ll play Hungarian Fabian Marozsan in the next round
Jannik Sinner, Halle, 2024 © Imago / Panoramic
Jannik Sinner put on an eye-catching display of grass-court tennis to defeat Tallon Griekspoor 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-2 and move into the second round of the Halle Open.
Playing in his first match since becoming the new world No 1, Sinner was made to work hard by the talented dutchman before finding his best form in the final two sets to seal an entertaining victory.
Griekspoor was impressive throughout the first stanza as a tight first set dominated by serve led to an equally close tiebreak. It was the world No 27 who clinched it 10-8 to move into a one-set lead against the reigning Australian Open champion.
But Sinner raised his level for the remainder of the contest, reaching heights Griekspoor simply couldn’t equal. One point of particular brilliance came at a crucial juncture, with the Italian earning the first break of the match with a superb diving cross-court winner that left both his opponent and the German crowd in awe.
That break was enough to seal the second set for Sinner, who duly broke twice in a one-sided final stanza to earn his maiden victory as the ATP’s leading man.
“I just love to play tennis. That’s it,” Sinner said in his on-court interview when asked about his new ranking.
“It’s a great number for sure. But In my mind I know I can still improve. I was looking forward to coming back to such a special place. This tournament believed in me. They gave me a wildcard five years ago.
“This is a special occasion for me. I’m just happy to step on court feeling healthy.”
It was an impressive start to the grass-court season for the world No 1, who will be hoping to go at least one round better at Wimbledon this year after reaching the semi-finals last summer before being dispatched by Novak Djokovic.
In the absence of the 24-time Grand Slam champion, all eyes will once again fall to Sinner and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz to light up SW19, both of whom will be the leading favourites for the title.
Sinner’s precise, powerful serve operates excellently on grass and his sliding defence also translates well from the clay onto this surface. This was very apparent today, as any concerns that Sinner may need a period of time to adjust to the change of courts was quickly dispelled by a thoroughly professional display in Germany.
He will face a promising young opponent in Fabian Marozsan next, with the Hungarian coming through his match against Safiullin yesterday to reach the last 16.
