Jannik Sinner swings into Halle Open semifinal, credits accepting challenges

Italy’s Jannik Sinner has revealed that his success in the Halle Open quarterfinal was due to his ability to accept challenges. The 22-year-old, along with Spain's Carlos Alcaraz, is often regarded as one of the most highly-rated players currently playing men’s tennis in the singles category.

Sinner is currently participating in the Halle Open, where he booked his place in the semifinal after beating Jan-Lennard Struff in the last-eight contest by scores of 6-2, 6-7, 7-6.

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Talking after the match, Sinner admitted that it was a hard contest for him, and he only managed to achieve the result by accepting that facing an opponent with a big serve was more than just a challenge.

“It was a very tough match,” he said. “I had many opportunities in both the second and third. He has always served well and I accepted this type of challenge mentally. I played a lot yesterday and today, I will try to recover in view of tomorrow's semi-final. In the second I was 0-40 and missed a forehand. You have to accept some mistakes and these situations, especially when you face tennis players who serve so well and moreover on grass," he explained.”

Jannik Sinner has recently become the world number one, replacing Serbia's Novak Djokovic in the process. 

Sinner is having a fabulous season. He won his first and, until now, only Grand Slam title, defeating Russia’s Daniil Medvedev in the final in a five-set thrilling contest with a score of 3–6, 3–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–3.

He then won the ATP event in Rotterdam after beating Alex de Minaur in the final in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 6-4. His last major triumph was the Miami Open, where he defeated Grigor Dimitrov in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-1. His opponent in the semifinal would be Zhang Zhizhen, who booked his place in the last-four after beating Christopher Eubanks in the final with a score of 6-4, 4-6, 7-5.