Jannik Sinner is the 2024 US Open champion, coming out on top in a relatively one-sided final against Taylor Fritz.
Heading into the final, Sinner was the overwhelming betting favourite, and he lived up to expectations, playing cleanly throughout to secure a 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 win in 2 hours and 17 minutes.
While Fritz competed well, I can’t think of a single area where he beats Sinner. Maybe his second serve offers a bit more variety, but he plays a similar but inferior style to Jannik, so I’m not sure how he wins outside Sinner having a bad day.
Match Stats
| Â | Jannik Sinner | Taylor Fritz |
|---|---|---|
| Aces | 6 | 10 |
| Double Faults | 5 | 4 |
| 1st Serve Percentage | 51% | 59% |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 88% (38/43) | 68% (36/53) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 48% (20/42) | 43% (16/37) |
| Break Points Saved | 71% (5/7) | 50% (6/12) |
| 1st Return Points Won | 32% (17/53) | 12% (5/43) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 57% (21/37) | 52% (22/42) |
| Break Points Converted | 50% (6/12) | 29% (2/7) |
| Winners | 23 | 29 |
| Unforced Errors | 21 | 34 |
| Net Points Won | 62% (8/13) | 68% (13/19) |
| Max Points In Row | 7 | 5 |
| Service Points Won | 68% (58/85) | 58% (52/90) |
| Return Points Won | 42% (38/90) | 32% (27/85) |
| Total Points Won | 55% (96/175) | 45% (79/175) |
| Max Games In Row | 5 | 3 |
| Service Games Won | 87% (13/15) | 63% (10/16) |
| Return Games Won | 38% (6/16) | 13% (2/15) |
| Total Games Won | 61% (19/31) | 39% (12/31) |
Highlights
Trophy Presentation
Thoughts on the Final
So the wait goes on for a homegrown Grand Slam champion at the US Open as Jannik Sinner showed he’s firmly the man to beat on hard courts.
Sinner has mastered precise and immaculate baseline hitting, and with his much-improved serve compared to a couple of years ago, it isn’t easy to get on top of him. He makes very few errors, so you’re certainly not going to beat him by trying to out-hit him from the baseline a la Fritz.
For most of the final, outside the first few games, which were a bit of a rollercoaster, where he lost three straight games after leading 2-0, Sinner was in control.
It was only a brief moment when Fritz, buoyed by the crowd’s support, grabbed a 5-3 lead in the third set to potentially make it interesting. However, he couldn’t close out the set, and Sinner capitalised by winning four consecutive games to secure the championship.
With this triumph, Sinner became only the fourth man to win both the Australian Open and the US Open in the same hard-court season, and he is also the first Italian man ever to claim the US Open title.
I found the final quite boring. Both players’ hitting was fast & furious and required extreme skill, but there was little in the way of imagination or mixing it up.
Sinner threw in a couple of drop shots towards the end, but outside of that, there was nothing, and he wasn’t even the player that needed to; he was in his comfort zone.
Of course, it’s easier said than done to start mixing it up, especially when it’s not in your repertoire. Fritz made the final playing great baseline tennis and came close to winning that third set using the same game plan, but you felt he had to throw in something a bit different to unsettle Sinner.
I also think that Sinner does have the doping cloud over him. Yes, it looks as though he didn’t do anything wrong, but the whole thing being covered up, the double standards compared to other players, and the lack of transparency around it all means there are question marks next to the win but everyone seems to have forgotten all about it already.
This title for me means so much; the last period of my career was not easy. There is my team who supports me every day, the people who are close to me. I love tennis, I practise a lot for these kind of stages, but off the court there is a life. I would like to dedicate this title to my aunt who is really not feeling well health wise. I don’t know how much I’ll still have her in my life. It’s so nice I can still share a positive moment with her. So many big wins for me this season, starting off with Australia. Playing so well there gave me confidence. The work never stops. I know I can still improve, as we saw today, a couple of things. But you have to be proud with what you have and the rest you have to work for it. I can’t wait for my continued process. Sinner on winning his 2nd Grand Slam.
What did you think of the final? Let me know in the comments.