It was a nail-biting first two sets for Jannik Sinner. He went down one set but fought back to win. The No.3 player in the world defeated Dutch player Tallon Griekspoor 5-7, 7-5, 6-1 in the Miami Open Round of 32 on Sunday. The match was probably a lot closer than the Italian wanted it to be, especially since Griekspoor is just 9-6 this year and has a losing record in his career. Sinner certainly got quite the scare in the second round of the tournament but pulled off the win nonetheless.
The No.2 seed in the Miami Open, Sinner dominated on serve, winning a whopping 90 percent of first-serve points and 70 percent of second-serve points. Sinner also recorded 15 aces in the match.
The Serve Was Key For Jannik Sinner
While Jannik Sinner won 70 percent of his second serve points, Griekspoor won only 47 percent. Griekspoor also had only two break point chances and won one of them. Playing like this is not going to get you a win against one of the best players in the world today. Sinner was able to use his serve as a weapon against the Dutchman as Griekspoor only won 13 points off of Sinner’s serve. This included just six points in the first set. Jannik Sinner won 44 points off of Griekspoor’s serve. Tallon Griekspoor also won just 66 percent of his first-serve points. He did not capitalize while on-serve.
When asked about the importance of serving out wide, Sinner said after the match,
“I think it just opens the court more.”
Rain Delay
As there has been for many tennis matches the past couple of weeks, this Miami Open match was hindered by a rain delay with Griekspoor leading 7-5, 3-3. It was just a short burst of rain so it wasn’t a multi-hour delay like was the case with Coco Gauff’s match at Indian Wells. Perhaps the Dutchman lost his momentum during the rain delay and the young Italian gained some.
Match Takeaway for Jannik Sinner
Nevertheless, we know one thing. Jannik Sinner’s incredible serve combined with his strong groundstrokes keep him in any match at any point.
“I think mentally I tried to stay strong, which I did, and I was in a tough situation today,” Sinner commented after the win.
Jannik Sinner won the match in two hours and 23 minutes. He will play unranked Australian Christopher O’Connell in the Round of 16 on Tuesday.
About The Author
Cooper Sherman is an avid NFL fan and enjoys watching and covering it the most. The NFL is king. He previously wrote and was a podcaster for the online publications Pro Sports Fanatics and Jersey Column. He is also an NBA fan and watches it occasionally, more when the NFL season ends. Tennis is also an underrated sport to watch. His teams are the Patriots and Celtics, as tough as it is to be a Patriots fan right now. He is optimistic that Jerod Mayo will turn this team in the right direction! Follow him on Instagram and Threads @coopstershermy456, and X/Twitter @justcoopthings.
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