Jannik Sinner closes in on tennis history after latest win in Rome

Jannik Sinner moved another step closer to a sixth straight Masters 1000 title on Tuesday, seeing off fellow Italian Andrea Pellegrino.

The 22-year-old was always in control, easing to a 6-2, 6-3 win in their fourth-round match at the Italian Open.

Sinner has been on an incredible run at the Masters level recently, barely being challenged by anyone across the tour.

He’s already been praised for having a “special talent” and will be looking to keep that momentum going when he faces Andrey Rublev, the number 12 seed, in Thursday’s quarter-final.

If Sinner manages to get past Rublev, he’ll set a new ATP record for consecutive Masters titles.

Sinner matches Djokovic’s Masters 1000 win streak

Jannik Sinner’s win over Pellegrino didn’t just move him into the quarter-finals – it also drew him level with Novak Djokovic for consecutive Masters 1000 victories, both sitting on 31 straight wins.

Djokovic set that mark back in his remarkable 2011 season, a year in which he collected titles across Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Rome and Canada.

Sinner’s own streak began after an unfortunate retirement against Tallon Griekspoor at the Shanghai Masters in October. Since then, he hasn’t lost a match at this level.

The Italian suffered severe cramps amid sweltering conditions in the Chinese city, calling it quits on their contest while trailing 7-6, 5-7, 2-3.

Since then, he has added titles in Paris, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo and Madrid to his name. Now back on home soil in Rome and aiming for a sixth straight trophy, Sinner is showing no signs of slowing down.

Novak Djokovic’s Masters 1000 streak ended in Cincinnati

Novak Djokovic appeared to be on track for his sixth Masters 1000 title of the year heading into the 2011 Cincinnati Open.

The Serbian started the tournament with straight-set wins over Ryan Harrison and Radek Stepanek, before setting up a match against Gael Monfils. Monfils took the first set 6-3, but Djokovic responded by winning the next two sets 6-4, 6-3.

Djokovic then progressed to the final after Tomas Berdych retired mid-match.

There he faced Andy Murray, who won their meeting after Djokovic retired while trailing 4-6, 0-3 due to a shoulder injury.

How Andy Murray reacted to Djokovic retiring from Cincinnati Open final

Murray was asked if winning via retirement affected his experience of claiming victory at an event like this. The Brit admitted that it did, telling reporters:

“Yeah, a little bit,” said Murray during his post-match press conference. “I would have obviously liked to have won by finishing the match.

“But it happens sometimes.”

Murray continued:

“You know, I have to look at the week as a whole. It’s been a very good week. Coming in here I had played badly in Montreal, so I needed to have a good week.

“Regardless of the match today, I was happy with the way that it had gone. Glad I managed to win today, but unfortunate the way it happened.”

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