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First set: Sinner* 1-2 De Minaur (*denotes next server)<\/p>\n
De Minaur is playing flat and fast so far, but can he do that consistently, or will the errors become too frequent? It\u2019s the right strategy, but so hard to maintain against a player as relentless as Sinner. The Australian accelerates to 30-15, then 40-30 with his sixth winner. Sinner? He\u2019s hit only one so far. Not a stat I thought I\u2019d type before this match started. De Minaur biffs into the net for deuce, but takes two fuss-free points from there to serve out the game. The first game in which there hasn\u2019t been a break point.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n First set: Sinner 1-1 De Minaur* (*denotes next server)<\/p>\n Ooohs and aaaahs from the crowd on a lovely first point, with slicing and dicing and drop shots and lobs and eventually a De Minaur winner, which lands bang on the baseline. Even the Italians are applauding the Australian. \u201cJust another 80 of those will do,\u201d quips Laura Robson on commentary. And look, look: 0-15 morphs into 0-30 and 0-40. Sinner hasn\u2019t been broken this week at all. He fends off the first bp with an unreturned serve; De Minaur slaps into the net on the second. Another snarling serve and it\u2019s deuce. Then advantage Sinner and game. Sinner maintains his perfect record.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n First set: Sinner* 0-1 De Minaur (*denotes next server)<\/p>\n Sinner claims the first victory of the day as he wins the toss. As if he needs any extra help. The world No 2 elects to receive and swiftly advances to 15-30. The pair trade cross-court forehand after cross-court forehand \u2026 and De Minaur nets for 15-40. His fiancee, British player Katie Boulter, is already hanging her head in the stands. But De Minaur saves the first break point with a forehand winner, and he\u2019s always in control of the second break point, and he finishes things off when he advances to the net and Sinner buckles under the pressure. Deuce. Advantage De Minaur. Deuce. Advantage De Minaur. Deuce. Advantage De Minaur. Game De Minaur. But already the challenge facing De Minaur this afternoon has been underlined.<\/p>\n Alex de Minaur smashes a serve to Jannik Sinner. Photograph: Antonio Calanni\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a009.03 EST<\/p>\n Henman\u2019s game plan for De Minaur is to have a high percentage of first serves, take risks, finish some points at the net, play the match of his life and hope Sinner has an off-day. So Tim\u2019s not asking for much then \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The stands are teeming with orange wigs, Italian flags and the obligatory die-hard carrots as Sinner makes his entrance, a minute or so after De Minaur. De Minaur does, at least, already have experience of being the villain in the eyes of this Italian crowd, having played Lorenzo Musetti in the group stage. He suffered a heartbreaking defeat then, blowing a 5-3 lead in the third set, but his gutsy win over Taylor Fritz secured his place in the last four by the narrowest of margins: just one game.<\/p>\n Jannik Sinner arrives on court ahead of his semi-final against Alex de Minaur. Photograph: Clive Brunskill\/Getty ImagesSinner (right) and de Minaur (left) pose for a photograph ahead of their semi-final. Photograph: Guglielmo Mangiapane\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a008.50 EST<\/p>\n Tim Henman\u2019s been speaking to Sinner. \u201cHe was in a very tough place a couple of days ago,\u201d Sinner says of De Minaur losing his opening two matches, \u201cbut then he had one of his best wins of the year [against Taylor Fritz]. I have to be careful. He doesn\u2019t have anything to lose. I have a lot to lose.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sky Sports are currently crunching the numbers of the Sinner v De Minaur head-to-head. They can\u2019t even list all of Sinner\u2019s 12 victories on the screen, but it still puts into sharp focus the task facing De Minaur this afternoon. He\u2019s facing not only his nemesis, the defending champion who hasn\u2019t dropped a set this week, and the Australian Open and Wimbledon winner, but also the 12,000-strong pro-Sinner crowd. So is there any way De Minaur can come through this? Erm, probably only by playing the match of his life. And even if he does that, his big heart and endless running likely won\u2019t be enough to counter Sinner\u2019s destructive power and relentless precision.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Already today in the doubles, Britain\u2019s Henry Patten and Finland\u2019s Harri Heliovaara have taken out the home favourites Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori, 6-4, 6-3, to reach the final for the first time. Last year\u2019s Wimbledon winners could face the reigning Wimbledon champions tomorrow, because Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool play in tonight\u2019s semi, which is an all-British affair with Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski. So it\u2019s guaranteed that three of the four finalists will be British.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n And one that definitely won\u2019t get De Minaur in the mood:<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n To get you in the mood:<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n All roads in Turin seem to be leading to a Carlos Alcaraz<\/a> v Jannik Sinner final and the latest chapter in what\u2019s already becoming one of tennis\u2019s greatest rivalries, just as all roads at every event they\u2019ve both entered this year have led to another title for the Sincaraz collection.<\/p>\n The numbers that sum up their supremacy are ubiquitous: they\u2019ve faced each other in the past three grand slam finals (the escape from Alcaraz in that French Open final the pick of the lot), won a combined 13 tournaments in 2025 and shared the past eight major titles between them. But one eye-catching stat has been less told: Alexander Zverev, the world No 3, is closer in ranking points to the world No 1000 than he is to Sinner, the No 2. No one can get near them. The chasing pack aren\u2019t in the same universe, even though they\u2019re playing the same sport.<\/p>\n So where does this leave Alex De Minaur and Felix Auger-Aliassime today? At least Auger-Aliassime knows what it\u2019s like to beat Alcaraz, having done so in three of their seven meetings, though the last of those wins was in 2022, when Alcaraz was still working on becoming a smiling assassin. But De Minaur has lost to Sinner in all 12 of their previous matches. The Demon said he\u2019d banished his demons after defeating Taylor Fritz for his first ever win at the ATP Finals<\/a> on Thursday, but how can he not be haunted by his record against the Italian going into their semi-final? Clutching at the positives for the Australian, at least he\u2019s got nothing to lose. Sinner, in front of his home crowd, is expected to win with ease \u2013 that\u2019s the pressure that being the defending champion, with 29 victories in a row on indoor hard courts, brings.<\/p>\n Sinner and De Minaur are first up at 2.30pm local time\/1.30pm GMT, with Alcaraz and Auger-Aliassime to come at 8.30pm\/7.30pm. I\u2019ll be here for both matches, so let\u2019s hope I\u2019m still standing by the end; barring the tennis world being knocked off its axis before then, Sinner and Alcaraz will be too.<\/p>\n