There they both sat in the second set of their U.S. Open semifinal on a humid afternoon Friday, simultaneously receiving treatment from trainers: Jannik Sinner got his left wrist massaged after falling during a point he managed to win; Jack Draper needed medical attention after vomiting twice.
The top-ranked Sinner, a 23-year-old from Italy, who was exonerated in a doping case less than a week before play began in New York, was the better player throughout and finished off a 7-5, 7-6 (3), 6-2 victory over Draper to reach his first title match at Flushing Meadows — and second at a Grand Slam tournament his year.
“It was a very physical match, as we see,” said Sinner, who is a righty but uses both fists for his backhands and kept flexing his left wrist after it got hurt. “I just tried to stay there mentally.”
It hearkened back to when Pete Sampras lost his lunch during a win over Alex Corretja during the 1996 U.S. Open — and created, to say the least, an unusual scene Friday at Arthur Ashe Stadium, where the temperature was around 25 degrees C and the humidity was above 60 per cent.
Sinner won the Australian Open in January and will seek his second major championship on Sunday against No. 12 Taylor Fritz or No. 20 Frances Tiafoe.
“Whoever it is,” Sinner said, “it’s going to be a very tough challenge for me. But I’m just looking forward to it.”
Word emerged last month that Sinner failed two drug tests eight days apart in March but was cleared because he said the trace amounts of an anabolic steroid entered his system unintentionally via a massage from a team member he since has fired. That whole episode has been a constant topic of conversation as he progressed through the U.S. Open bracket.
Good pals Fritz and Tiafoe were scheduled to play each other Friday night in the other men’s semifinal, the first in New York between two Americans in 19 years. One would become the first U.S. man in a Slam title match since Andy Roddick lost to Roger Federer at Wimbledon in 2009 — and if either were to defeat Sinner, it would give the United States its first major trophy for a man since Roddick triumphed in New York in 2003.
The women’s final on Saturday also will feature an American, with No. 6 Jessica Pegula taking on No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus.
The longer that points lasted between Sinner and Draper — who are friends and played doubles together at an event in August — the more things went the Italian’s way as the contest stretched past three hours.
Sinner took the point on 50 of 80 that lasted nine or more strokes.
“Jannik plays at such a high level,” Draper said, “all the time.”
Draper has plenty of talent, and he hadn’t dropped a set over the past two weeks until Friday, but his biggest issue as a pro has been his body, and it was again on this day. The weather surely didn’t help. Nor did any tension associated with making his debut in a Slam semifinal. Nor did Sinner’s relentlessness.
The collection of empty water bottles kept growing by Draper’s sideline seat as he tried to hydrate. He also requested a can of soda in the third set. By the time it arrived, nothing was going to help him slow Sinner, who improved to 34-2 on hard courts in 2024.
“It’s a big occasion for me. Even though I generally feel pretty relaxed and stuff, I definitely felt more excited today, a few more nerves around. I’m definitely someone who is, I think, quite an anxious human being,” Draper said. “When you add all that together, sometimes I do feel a bit nausea on court, and I do feel a little bit sick when it gets tough.”
Ostapenko, Kichenok win women’s doubles title
Lyudmyla Kichenok was supposed to get married this week to Jelena Ostapenko’s coach.
A run to the U.S. Open women’s doubles championship forced a change of plans.
Kichenok and Ostapenko won the title Friday for their first major as a team, beating Kristina Mladenovic and Zhang Shuai 6-4, 6-3.
Kichenok said she and Stanislav Khmarskiy were supposed to have been married Wednesday, the day she and Ostapenko won their U.S. Open semifinal match.
“I think it’s a good excuse to postpone it a bit,” Ostapenko said during the trophy ceremony.
Kichenok and Ostapenko, the No. 7 seeds, began the season with a loss in the Australian Open final. They were too good in Flushing Meadows, where they didn’t drop a set and won $750,000 US.
It was the fifth title together overall for Ostapenko, a Latvian who won the 2017 French Open in singles, and Kichenok, who dedicated the victory to her home country of Ukraine.
“They are fighting really hard for our freedom right now and I just hope I can give them some encouragement,” Kichenok said, “and my heart is with them.”
