It was after losing in the US Open final last year that Jannik Sinner said he needed to be less predictable if he was to beat Carlos Alcaraz more regularly. Moving forward, finishing points at the net, he added, would help him against all opponents.
For a while in his third-round encounter with Jenson Brooksby here, it seemed as if Sinner had forgotten all about his own advice. With the exception of a bounce smash, he barely ventured towards the net in the first set, happy enough to crank his huge groundstrokes from the baseline instead. In the second set, though, something clicked. The Italian won 11 out of 11 points at the net and even served and volleyed four times, winning all four. Note to self: get forward.
