NEW YORK: Reigning champion Jannik Sinner expects another “special” occasion when he plays Carlos Alcaraz for the men’s US Open title after the Italian reached his fifth successive Grand Slam final on Friday.
Sinner beat Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and is chasing a fifth career major after joining Rod Laver, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic as the only men to reach all four Grand Slam finals in a season.
“I think five straight Grand Slam finals, it’s something great. The consistency and putting myself there in the later stages of the biggest tournaments we have, it’s amazing,” said Sinner.
“I would have never thought that I would make this when I turned pro, and now I find myself here.”
His world No. 1 ranking will be at stake on Sunday when he faces Alcaraz for the third consecutive Grand Slam final.
Sinner, 24, captured the Australian Open and Wimbledon titles this season but lost to the 22-year-old Alcaraz in an epic five-set battle at the French Open.
“On court we like to see each other, you know, because it means that considering our ranking, it means that we are doing well in the tournament,” said Sinner.
They will meet at the US Open for the second time. Their first encounter in the 2022 quarter-finals was a seismic battle that has come to shape their rivalry.
“Sunday is a very special day and an amazing final again,” said Sinner. “I feel like our rivalry started here playing an amazing match. We are two different players now, with different confidence too.”
Three years ago, it was Alcaraz who prevailed after a 5hr 15min marathon that finished just before 3 a.m. in New York, with the Spaniard going on to lift his maiden Grand Slam at that tournament.
Sinner is looking to catch Alcaraz on Sunday by collecting his fifth major. Much of that success has been built on the back of 27 straight Grand Slam match wins on hard courts.
He is aiming to become the first man to successfully defend the US Open crown since Federer won the last of five consecutive titles in 2008.
Canada’s Auger-Aliassime was trying to reach his first Grand Slam final after making the last four for the first time since his run to the same stage in New York in 2021.
“I don’t have regrets. I played my way. I played my game. You know, you kind of live and die with your choices,” said Auger-Aliassime.
