Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz set for Beijing blockbuster

IMAGE: Italy's Jannik Sinner in action during his semi final match against China's Yunchaokete Bu. Photograph: Tingshu Wang/Reuters

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner and No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz will clash in Wednesday's China Open final in Beijing.

The top-seeded Sinner advanced with a 6-3, 7-6 (3) victory over home favorite Bu Yunchaokete and No. 2 seed Alcaraz held off No. 3 Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-3 in Tuesday's semifinals.

Sinner struck 11 aces and saved all three break points in the 2-hour, 5-minute match. The Italian recorded twice as many winners (31-15) and recorded the only service break to go up 4-2 in the first set.

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IMAGE: Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in action during his semi final match against Russia's Daniil Medvedev. Photograph: Tingshu Wang/Reuters

Sinner, the defending champion, brings a 15-match winning streak into the showdown with Spain's Alcaraz, who needed only 88 minutes to defeat Russia's Medvedev. Alcaraz has a 5-4 lead in his series with Sinner.

Japan Open

Frenchman Arthur Fils saved a championship point during the second-set tiebreak and defeated countryman Ugo Humbert 5-7, 7-6 (6), 6-3 to capture his third career title in Tokyo.

The unseeded Fils defeated four top-20 opponents during his championship run: No. 1 seed Taylor Fritz, defending champion Ben Shelton, Holger Rune of Denmark and Humbert.

In a match that lasted just over 3 hours, Fils fired 10 aces and won 80 percent (44 of 55) of the points on his first serve. He finished with four more winners (38-34) and five fewer unforced errors (48-53) than Humbert.

The momentum-shifting moment came in the tiebreak. Trailing 5-6, Fils delivered a backhand passing shot for the first of three straight points to level the match.

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