Jannik Sinner was dominated for the first time in months in the first set of his Italian Open match against Tommy Paul. Paul, a good but likely never great player, has become a dangerous clay-court player. He did not seem the kind of player who could take Sinner out of the Rome tournament.
Yet, the American destroyed his Italian counterpart 6-1 in the first set. Sinner was lucky to get the one. It was 5-0 before the Italian took his first game. Paul was moving well (he is a fantastic athlete), and his backhand was wherever he wanted. Sinner, meanwhile, was off. He hit the ball too long many times and had far too many unforced errors.
In the second set, reality set in. Sinner is not the ATP No. 1 for no reason. He out-hits most opponents, especially on a hard court. He has not yet reached the heights of greatness on clay as he hasn't taken the title at the French Open. Before this year, Sinner had not reached the quarterfinals at the Italian Open.
Jannik Sinner will face Carlos Alcaraz in the final of the 2025 Italian Open
But the semifinals against Paul were a shock. The Italian had played a nearly perfect match in the quarters against Casper Ruud, but Ruud only won one game. To begin the match against Paul, however, Sinner looked more like Ruud in the quarters, making silly and unnecessary errors.
But champions do not go quietly into the Rome night. Sinner quickly re-established who the alpha was and did not lose another game until he led 3-0 in the third set. Paul somehow managed to get a break of Sinner to close within 3-2, but the Italian got the break back and finished off the match 1-6 6-0 6-3.
In the final, Sinner will face his likely long-term adversary, Carlos Alcaraz. The duo will probably rule tennis for at least the next decade. Both are historically great players who could have competed during any era. Having a third who could challenge them would be nice, but that does not appear imminent.
The Italian Open final might be a prelude to the French Open final. Alcaraz and Sinner make for electric matches, and Rome should have fun watching on Sunday. As Sinner is an Italian, the crowd will be firmly behind him. The only issue could be that Sinner seemed to strain his hamstring in the third set versus Paul—something to watch.