Reigning Australian Open men’s singles champion Jannik Sinner fought off a third-set injury scare to beat Ben Shelton and set up an exciting final against Alexander Zverev.
The world number one won 7-6[2] 6-2 6-2 to move one match away from defending his title in Melbourne, though he wasn’t fully comfortable in the final set.
After hitting a two-handed backhand, Sinner winced as he landed and was visibly limping as he made his way back to the baseline. He eventually required treatment on his thigh. Despite not looking completely at ease for the rest of the match, Sinner had little trouble against Shelton, breaking to love in the second-to-last game before converting his first match point.
Sinner, aiming for his second straight Australian Open title and third consecutive Grand Slam win on hard courts, has now won an incredible 20 major matches in a row on this surface. He is the second-youngest man to achieve this in the Open Era, after a 22-year-old John McEnroe in 1981.
Sinner is also the youngest man to reach back-to-back Australian Open finals since the turn of the millennium. To keep his title, he now faces a tough test against Zverev, after the German’s semi-final with Novak Djokovic was cut short.
