A super Tsitsipas helped by a refereeing error in his favor and above all by a physical problem that arose when he was down a break in the third set stopped Jannik Sinner’s run in Monte Carlo. The Greek, in form as he has rarely seen in recent years, wins 6-4 3-6 6-4 in a beautiful and hard-fought match.
A match that seemed destined to turn in the Italian’s favor when at 3-1 he had the chance to make a second break but a refereeing error (the Greek’s ball clearly went out and wasn’t called) prevented him from doing so. Then a muscular problem arose for the South Tyrolean which affected his performance and lowered his level of play, while Tsitsipas’ level has always remained very high.
So counter-break and then again a break closed the third set, bringing the Greek back to an ATP 1000 final after two years in Monte Carlo where he has already triumphed twice in his career. His opponent will exit the match between Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud.
“It happened and there’s nothing we can do now, it’s already over. It’s a shame, it’s hard to accept because at times I was playing really well and tactically everything was going my way,” Sinner said in a press conference commenting on the mistake referee who probably compromised his match. “Unfortunately, or fortunately, everyone can make mistakes. I can make mistakes too. And that’s what happened today,” Sinner said with his usual class. “Then I got cramps (in my thighs, ed.). This is probably the consequence of what happened, because it also affects my nerves – he explained – I did my best, but Stefanos raised his level and had the best of me. These ups and downs are part of the charm of tennis,” concluded Sinner the wise man.