Sinner continues Zverev domination to set up Miami Open final against Lehecka | Tennis

During an intense and captivating hour on the Miami Open stadium court, Alexander Zverev exceeded the modest expectations of his skeptical audience. Under sustained, suffocating pressure from the world’s best returner, he held his own serve and kept Jannik Sinner honest as a competitive second set ended in a tiebreak. Eight points past, nothing could separate them.

Things changed suddenly. At 4-4 on his own serve, Zverev put together a routine that would have narrowly advanced him. Instead, the tension that comes with facing a player of Sinner’s caliber ultimately prevailed. Zverev collapsed, framing his smash into the net.

This point perfectly demonstrates the pressure Sinner is putting on all his opponents these days, and it, unsurprisingly, proves his undoing. Moments later, after landing two excellent first serves, Sinner advanced to the final of the Miami Open with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory.

On paper, this was the toughest semi-final Sinner could have faced, number 2 against world number 3. However, the gap between the top two and the rest of the field is so big. Sinner entered the match with 11,800 ranking points in the live ATP rankings, well over double Zverev’s total of 5,205. Zverev initially led his head-to-head record 4-1, but since August 2024, Sinner has won his last seven meetings, winning his last 10 sets.

Yet Zverev has been playing with much more confidence since his five-set loss to Carlos Alcaraz at the Australian Open. He served well and attacked his forehand with enough authority to hold his own from the baseline while frequently looking to close out the match. He played a good match, but he was still beaten in two sets by a much better player, with better weapons in his game and greater mental toughness.

Sinner is now one victory away from claiming back-to-back titles at Indian Wells and Miami Open, a feat now colloquially known as the Sunshine Double. He will be heavily favored to win on Sunday as he faces 21st seed Jiri Lehecka, who continued his spectacular run by dismantling 28th seed Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-2.

“Being here in the final again means a lot to me. Obviously we’re trying to attack now in a few days, but at the same time, anyway, it’s been an incredible swing,” Sinner said. “Trying to play as many matches as possible. That was my goal and I couldn’t do better so I’m very happy today.”

Ever since a dazed Sinner expressed his intention to revamp his game with greater variation following his loss to Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open, all eyes have been on the Italian’s use of his drop shots, slices and volleys. Yet the most impressive part of his four weeks on American hard courts was his serve, which he took to another level. Against Zverev, Sinner hit 15 aces, landing 74% of first serves and winning 79% of points behind them. He has only lost his serve once in the last two weeks.

Earlier on Friday, Lehecka reached a Masters 1000 final for the first time in his career with one of his best performances. Son was, in many ways, the most interesting story of the tournament on the men’s side. The 21-year-old was competing in only his fourth tournament after an eight-month injury layoff due to a stress fracture in his back. Having already reached a final in Doha and a quarter-final in Indian Wells, Son broke new ground by reaching his first Masters 1000 semi-final after recovering from four consecutive match points to defeat Tommy Paul in a final set tie-break.

However, while Fils looked mentally exhausted from his efforts in the quarter-final, he came up against a sublime Lehecka who simply made no mistake throughout the match. Lehecka, who did not let up on his serve at all in Miami, dominated with his massive serve as usual. But he also came back brilliantly and commanded the majority of the rallies from the top of the backline, hitting the ball so cleanly on both wings. At 24 years old, Lehecka’s talent has been known for some time and a great run to a significant final is not as surprising as it might seem at first glance. He will now face one of the toughest challenges possible in the biggest match of his career.