Jannik Sinner’s No. 1 bid starts with 2nd-round win over Zizou Bergs
PARIS, Oct 30: There seems to be no stopping Valentin Vacherot, who reached another Masters quarterfinal by beating Cameron Norrie 7-6 (4), 6-4 in Paris on Thursday.
Already this month, Vacherot made a stunning run from the qualifiers to win the Shanghai Masters for his first career title. He downed 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the semifinals and beat his own cousin Arthur Rinderknech in the final.
“I never expected it,” Vacherot said. “Good thing that I keep going here, maybe enjoying the matches even more than in Shanghai.”
The 40th-ranked Vacherot, who is from Monaco, beat Rinderknech again in the second round here in Paris, setting up a match against Norrie after the British player eliminated top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz.
Vacherot had five aces and saved all five break points against Norrie, who dropped serve once.
Vacherot next faces ninth-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime, who rallied past Daniel Altmaier 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Victory maintained Auger-Aliassime’s chances of reaching the eight-man, season-ending ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.
Fifth-seeded Ben Shelton beat 12th-seeded Andrey Rublev 7-6 (6), 6-3 to set up a potential quarterfinal with four-time Grand Slam champion Jannik Sinner.
SINNER WINS
Jannik Sinner’s bid to reclaim the No. 1 ranking got off to a good start Wednesday with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Zizou Bergs in the second round of the Paris Masters, which the Italian needs to win to knock Carlos Alcaraz off the top spot.
Sinner’s 65-week reign as No. 1 ended in September when Alcaraz won the U.S. Open final against him for his sixth major title and the top spot. But Alcaraz lost in Paris on Tuesday in the second round to unseeded Cameron Norrie, opening the door for Sinner in their seesaw rivalry.
Sinner had Bergs under constant pressure, forging 11 break-point chances and converting three, while not conceding a break point of his own.
“I was very precise, and I also started off with a break straight away, which gives you a bit more confidence,” said Sinner, who is chasing a fifth title of the year and 23rd overall. “I’m very happy how I served today.”
Defending champion Alexander Zverev joined Sinner in round three by rallying from 3-1 down in the final set to beat Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-7 (5), 6-1, 7-5.
The third-seeded German made a telling difference on his second serve, winning 78% of points compared to 42% for his opponent, who dropped his serve four times. Zverev next plays 15th-seeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Elsewhere, ninth-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada rallied from a break down in the second set and 3-0 down in the third set tiebreaker in a 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4) win over Frenchman Alexandre Muller.
Auger-Aliassime’s erratic performance combined 50 winners and 55 unforced errors as he he maintained his chances of reaching the season-ending, eight-player ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.
He next faces unseeded Daniel Altmaier, who beat eighth-seeded Casper Ruud 6-3, 7-5 to end the Norwegian’s Turin chances. Seventh-seeded Lorenzo Musetti lost 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 to fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego, who next plays No. 11 Daniil Medvedev, the 2020 champion and 2021 runner-up.
Medvedev had a walkover after Grigor Dimitrov — the 2023 tournament runner-up — pulled out of their match with a shoulder injury. (AP)
