Jannik Sinner defeated Rafa Jódar in the Madrid Open quarter-finals, 6-2, 7-6(0), a result that may not do justice to the level shown by the 19-year-old Spaniard, hailed as the new rising star in tennis, and the match showed why: he was able to push the World No. 1 to the limit, and Sinner's experience and ability to overcome difficult moments (he won ten straight points in the tie-break and the game leading to it, and saved seven break points) ended up making the difference, even with the crowd against him.
After the match, Sinner paid respect to Jódar, writing "what a player" as he signed the camera. Jódar already knows what it's like to win an ATP Tournament, winning an ATP 250 in Marrakech, then reaching Barcelona Open semi-finals and now Madrid Open quarter-finals, in which he won his first Top 10, Alex de Miñaur, as well as the "other" 19-year-old star everyone is watching, Joao Fonseca.
Sinner is now into Madrid semi-finals for the first time, extending a 21-match winning streak, and will face Arthur Fils or Jiri Lehecka: he could become the first man to win five consecutive Masters 1,000 titles. Meanwhile, Jódar will still climb from his current World No. 42 and is close to entering Roland Garros as a seeded player...
