By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, August 16, 2025Photo credit score: Cincinnati Open Fb
Dealing aces throughout this impressed Cincinnati run, qualifier Terence Atmane performed a comic book card earlier than dealing with Jannik Sinner at present.
Moments earlier than the pair stepped on court docket, Atmane commemorated Sinner’s twenty fourth birthday by giving the highest seed a Pokemon card and a heartfelt hug.
After an attractive opening set, Sinner celebrated his birthday bash with a triumphant triple play return to the Cincinnati Open closing.
Defending champion Sinner stopped Atmane 7-6(4), 6-2 to attain his twenty sixth straight hard-court win—and two hundredth profession hard-court victory.
World No. 1 Sinner surged into his twenty eighth profession closing, together with his eighth profession ATP Masters 1000 closing.
“Very, very powerful match as a result of each time while you play in opposition to somebody fully new, it’s very troublesome,” Sinner mentioned. “The strain is greater. You already know that they need to be there. He has overwhelmed unbelievable gamers so I knew I needed to be very very cautious.”
2️⃣4️⃣ and hungry for extra 💪
Birthday boy @janniksin ends Terence Atmane’s dream run 7-6 6-2 to succeed in his eighth Masters closing #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/D14BtmcNwm
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 16, 2025
Clad in a logo-less vanilla t-shirt, mis-matched black and blue wristbands, the partaking Atmane owns a genius IQ, explosive baseline sport and is an entertaining presence who was an enormous hit with Cincinnati followers. Even after this loss, Atmane paused on his stroll off to high-five appreciative followers.
Bear in mind the identify 🙌
Terence Atmane will get a correct sendoff from @janniksin and the #CincyTennis followers. pic.twitter.com/e64X7hI5Pq
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 16, 2025
Hanging cleanly, Sinner smacked six aces in opposition to no double faults, received 32 of 35 first-serve factors and didn’t face a break level in a one hour, 26-minute triumph.
Afterward, Cincy followers serenaded Sinner with a rousing model of “Glad Birthday.”
For Sinner, the track stays the identical: management the baseline, compete with calm composure and crack the ball when he steps ahead. The game’s premier hard-court champion will play for his twenty first profession championship within the closing.
“I really feel like I dealt with the scenario very nicely,” Sinner mentioned. “He has big potential and I feel we noticed that all through the match. From my facet I’m very glad to be within the finals, so let’s see what’s to come back.”
The reigning Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open champion will face both second-ranked rival Carlos Alcaraz or third-seeded Alexander Zverev in Monday’s closing.
Atmane is a whole lot of enjoyable to look at and downright scary to face when he masses up on his deadly lefty forehand.
Hardly ever do you see the world No. 1 overpowered on court docket, however the explosive Frenchman disarmed Sinner at occasions within the opener, detonating his forehand as he did scoring Prime 10 wins over Taylor Fritz and Holger Rune.
Unloading in an incendiary seventh sport, Atmane blasted three aces for a 4-3 lead.
That show would unsettle some opponents, however Sinner instantly answered with three consecutive love holds, surging by way of 17 straight service factors close to the tip of the set.
Sinner slammed an ace to pressure the first-set tiebreaker.
The qualifier blinked first, committing the primary double fault of the day to present the mini break. Enjoying lockdown baseline tennis, Sinner drained 4 errors within the first six factors for a 4-2 lead.
In a crackling crosscourt trade, Atmane stepped in and crushed a fiery forehand winner snapping a 22-shot rally—the longest of the match—to shut to 3-5. Although he received that battle, Atmane misplaced the struggle netting a backhand to face three set factors.
On his second set level, Sinner’s serve discovered the Frenchman’s backhand jolting a large return because the US Open champion closed a fierce 46-minute opening set.
Sinner received 29 of 33 serve factors within the opening set and hit 4 extra winners—15 to 11—than Atmane.
A highly-skilled and explosive participant, Atmane nonetheless has room for enchancment on his return and volley the place he has nice contact, however tends to predictably play the drop volley fairly than drive volleys deeper. On return, Atmane has a reasonably expansive grip change, so he tends to chip again returns. Sinner acknowledged it and threw in some efficient serve-and-volley performs.
Nonetheless, the 23 year-old Atmane threatened the highest seed’s serve at the beginning of the second set. Atmane received six return factors in that first sport—two greater than he’d received the whole first set—however Sinner managed the stress shrewdly and spun a forehand move holding for 1-0.
That eight-and-a-half minute maintain empowered Sinner additional and he turned the screws on Atmane within the fourth sport. Sinner scalded a crosscourt forehand for double break level—the primary break factors of the match after 68 minutes of play.
On his second break level, Sinner despatched a deep return by way of the center, drew the quick reply and tomahawked a forehand down the road breaking for 3-1.
A free-flowing Sinner stamped his fifth love maintain of the match for 4-1.
Credit score the qualifier for sticking to his weapons and taking place firing huge. Atmane saved two match factors, together with pounding his ninth ace down the T to disclaim the primary.
On his third match level, Sinner slammed a deep return and drew the netted forehand sealing his twelfth consecutive win and increasing his Cincinnati profitable streak to 9 matches.
Although Atmane’s wonderful Cincinnati run is over it propels him from No. 136 at the beginning of the match to No. 69 within the ATP Stay rankings. That received’t be sufficient to achieve direct entry into the US Open major draw as a result of the Flushing Meadows main used rankings from its July cutoff.
Which means if you may get to New York, you expertise Atmania stay in US Open qualifying beginning on Monday.
Sinner will attempt to prolong his reign as King of Queen Metropolis within the Monday showdown in opposition to Alcaraz or Zverev and appears each bit a formidable favourite to defend in Flushing Meadows.
