Jannik Sinner heard the roar from the Turin crowd and asked for more. As Carlos Alcaraz looked for momentum in the second set of their ATP Finals clash, Sinner withstood his rival to win a 24-shot rally and then stood with his finger to his ear. It was a move drawn from Alcaraz’s playbook, the showman whipping the crowd into a frenzy and finding inspiration from the spark it created. In an electric atmosphere in northern Italy, Sinner fell onto his back as he won match point to win a second ATP Finals title in a row without dropping a set.
There was more emotion on show than when Sinner defeated Alcaraz to win the Wimbledon title in July. His fitness coach Umberto Ferrara, who returned to Sinner’s team before Wimbledon having fired him the year before for his role in the Italian’s doping case, was in floods of tears as the champion celebrated in his coaching box. “There is for sure no better ending for the season,” Sinner said. “It has been an incredible season, so many ups, difficult moments obviously, for various reasons.”
