Jannik Sinner suffered his first defeat in 16 matches after his third defeat to Carlos Alcaraz this year in the Beijing Final.
The world number one managed to win his 18th tie-break in 19 as he closed out a tense first set against a battling Carlos Alcaraz.
The 21-year-old levelled things up in the seance with a decisive break, before racing to an early lead in the third.
Jannik Sinner took the match to a tie-break and took an early 3-0 lead. After a forced change of footwear, Alcaraz marched to seven straight points to leave a 10,000 strong Chinese crowd well and truly entertained.
In the background however, the discourse was very much alive, with Sinner’s ongoing doping saga having taken another turn earlier this week.
Kim Clijsters states her opinion on Jannik Sinner’s doping case in unchanged
Sinner has been forced to endure an unsettling six weeks, despite managing to win his first US Open title.
Having initially been cleared of alleged doping, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced last week that they had appealed the decision, suggesting Sinner should be banned for “between one and two years”.
Only beaten once since the initial news broke in mid-August, Sinner is still facing rather a lot of scrutiny.
Clijsters was initially in agreement with Andy Roddick that Sinner is at not fault, citing the incredibly minuscule amount of the drug clostebol found in his system – one billionth of a gram or 58,000 times smaller than a grain of salt.
“It’s a very tough situation to try and form an opinion about. I agree, my opinion hasn’t changed since I spoke to his team at the US Open,” Clijsters said on the podcast ‘Served with Andy Roddick‘.
The Belgian added: “I think, or my feeling at the moment is that WADA also needs to prove a point to make sure that in the future this negligence issue doesn’t get used to actually do some things wrong, so that’s where I stand with it.”
Jannik Sinner is dealing with the noise in remarkable fashion
Sinner explained how he’s dealt with pressure this year, revealing that he has sought constant improvement despite his largely dominant 2024.
While his shot-making has been the main things that’s propelled him to the very top, his resilience is one of his defining traits, allowing him to battle through tough matches and overcome challenging situations.
His mental toughness, combined with his ability to adapt his game, has helped him secure the crucial wins that have kept him world number one.
Sinner’s relentless work ethic and determination are even mire formidable when you consider the growing dialogue circulating around him.
Likely struggling with the decision to re-open his case behind the scenes, the Italian is remaining steely-faced and stoic as he looks for a sharp end to the season.
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