Sinner marks birthday with Cincinnati Open final spot

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner celebrated his 24th birthday in style by booking a place in the Cincinnati Open final with a straight-sets win over France’s Terence Atmane, Sport360NG reports.

The Italian, who is defending his title in Ohio, eased through 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 without conceding a single break point. The victory not only secured him a spot in Monday’s final against either Carlos Alcaraz or Alexander Zverev, but also brought up his 200th career win on hard courts and extended his unbeaten run on the surface to 26 matches.

“It’s always tough when you face someone for the first time,” Sinner said. “He’s beaten some great players this week, so I knew I needed to be careful. He has huge potential.”

Atmane, ranked 136 in the world, came through qualifying to reach the main draw and produced an impressive run, knocking out Flavio Cobolli, Taylor Fritz and Holger Rune. Before the match, the 23-year-old, a passionate Pokémon collector, handed Sinner a trading card as a birthday gift.

Once play began, Atmane made a strong start with three consecutive aces in the opening set, but a costly double fault in the tie-break handed Sinner the advantage. From there, the top seed tightened his grip, breaking twice in the second set to wrap up the contest.

Sinner will now look to defend his Cincinnati crown and carry momentum into the upcoming US Open, where he will attempt to add another major title to his growing collection.