Third time’s a charm after all. Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner was in scintillating form and dropped just four games en route to his first Miami Open title, and second Masters 1000 silverware, dismissing an error-prone Grigor Dimitrov display during Sunday’s final – a result which sees him rise to world no. 2, a feat no other Italian regardless of gender has achieved in the sport.
Sinner shows Dimitrov the door with decisive final display
Sinner [2] bt. Dimitrov [13] 6-3, 6-1
- Red-hot form: Sinner strings together another memorable tournament, clinching a 13th ATP tour singles title and third of the 2024 season
- 22-year-old won 88% of his first serve points played, hit 15 winners and nine unforced errors. Dimitrov by comparison, just 59% with three more winners but leaked 23 unforced errors – 12 from the backhand alone
- Dimitrov finding positives in his runners-up speech: “I was so determined to do well here this year, almost did too well! Extremely special to play in-front of you, been a long couple of weeks, very thankful and grateful… hopefully can go a step further. Feel like a winner when I look at my box.”
- Sinner acknowledged the Bulgarian’s long-awaited return to prominence: “It’s so nice to see you playing this level again Grigor, we sometimes practice together in Monaco, it’s a pleasure to speak and learn from you.”
JANNIK Sinner’s superb start to 2024 continued on Sunday night in Miami, as he made easy work of Grigor Dimitrov during a final that quickly became straightforward for the in-form Italian. So much so that you could audibly hear the experienced Bulgarian, 11 years his senior, almost apologetic when they embraced at the net.
Having saved a break point to level at 2-2 in set one, Sinner quickly made inroads on the Dimitrov serve in the subsequent game and found the breakthrough afterwards.
Wrongfooted into losing a point rather clinically as he charged forward towards the net to finish a rally, a forehand passing shot winner sealed the deal on the next point as Sinner had a break to consolidate and did so with minimal fuss.
Dimitrov’s backhand was failing him, the newly-minted world no. 9 unable to make significant inroads in Sinner’s service games and instead fighting to hold his own.
A highlight reel backhand up-the-line winner sealed a 6-3 set for the youngster, firmly in control and dictating proceedings against a player who couldn’t match that high level long enough for pressure to mount on the shoulders of a three-time finalist.
The variation in his groundstrokes and in-game tactics was proving a tad predictable, as Sinner continued peppering passing shots whenever opportunities arose to make him think twice about the timing of his net approach shots. That dynamic was evidenced by a point at *40-15 on Sinner’s serve to start the second set.
Foot speed and anticipation was key here but you could almost see Dimitrov being psychologically demoralised by the relentless returns firing his way and shot depth that came with them, something that wasn’t a consistent theme against Carlos Alcaraz nor Alexander Zverev earlier in the week as he navigated beyond both.
Adding to his frustrations though, Dimitrov followed a clean 92mph backhand winner by netting a forehand smash and that rather typified a forgettable finale, already on double the Italian’s unforced error count (16) as another service break soon arrived.
His 11th backhand unforced error came in the same game as he pulled a drop shot short, overcooked a forehand, lost a long rally before slicing a backhand which didn’t even reach the net. Out of ideas and inspiration, the writing was on the wall.
Dimitrov stayed aggressive and displayed decent point construction at times, though it’s easier to accept a comprehensive defeat if your opponent is constantly producing otherworldly shots you force out of him. That was certainly there in patches, but largely he could only blame himself for what proved a heavy loss at the final hurdle.
“The hard court season has been pretty good for me,” Sinner chuckled in his post-match flash interview. That’s a modest understatement, but how will he now fare with a target on his back come the clay swing, where he’s historically inconsistent?
Picture source: Getty Images, quotes via Tennis Channel broadcast
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