Jannik Sinner vs Frances Tiafoe – Breakdown and Prediction

August 19, 2024

Jannik Sinner vs Frances Tiafoe: ATP Cincinnati – Final

American Frances Tiafoe will go against the world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in his first-ever Masters final at the ATP Cincinnati.

Jannik Sinner Profile

The world No. 1 Jannik Sinner is 49-5 for the season and 24-2 on hard surface.

The Italian is coming off a 7-6, 5-7, 7-6 win over Alexander Zverev in the semifinal. Earlier in the tournament, he defeated Andrey Rublev, Jordan Thompson and Alex Michelsen.

Last week, he lost 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 to Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinal in Montreal. That was his first match after losing to Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinal in Wimbledon in five sets.

Sinner won four titles this season including his first Grand Slam at the Australian Open. He also lift the trophies in Halle, Miami and Rotterdam.

This is his fourth appearance in Cincinnati and the first time he has made it past the round of 16.

Frances Tiafoe Profile

Frances Tiafoe is 27th in the ATP rankings and his career high was No. 10 in the world. The American is 24-21 for the season and 15-11 on hard surface.

Tiafoe is coming off a 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 win over Holger Rune in the semifinals. Earlier in the tournament, he defeated Hubert Hurkacz, Jiri Lehecka, Lorenzo Musetti, and Alejandro Davidiovich Fokina.

This is his second final of the season after losing to Ben Shelton in Houston.

Head-to-Head Sinner leads 3-1

Sinner vs Tiafoe 6-3, 6-4 (2023 ATP Vienna, quarterfinal)
Tiafoe vs Sinner 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 (2021 ATP Vienna, semifinal)
Sinner vs Tiafoe 3-4, 4-2, 4-2, 4-2 (2019 NextGen ATP Finals)
Sinner vs Tiafoe 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 (2019 ATP Antwerp, quarterfinals)

Prediction and Conclusion

Both players had a tough road to reach the final match after surviving decisive tiebreaks in the semis. We could all expect to see the world No. 1 Jannik Sinner going this far, but Frances Tiafoe surprised many by making to his first-ever final at the ATP Masters 1000 series. The American absolutely deserved the chance to play for his biggest career title, but he will have to play his best tennis to stand a chance against Sinner. The Italian is still not at 100% after his health issues, and that is the chance for Tiafoe. He has defeated Sinner in the past and has won a set in a couple of the losses, so we go with Tiafoe to win at least a set tonight in Cincinnati.