Sinner's lights-out serving torpedoes Tiafoe in Cincinnati final

The serve was lights out.

Jannik Sinner defeated Frances Tiafoe 7-6(1), 6-2 in the final of the Cincinnati Open on Friday on the back of his strongest serving display of the tournament.

Tiafoe only won 11 return points for the match, with Sinner holding five of his 10 service games to love. Things might have trended in a different direction if Tiafoe had converted either of the two break points he held in the opening game when Sinner fell behind 15/40. But two return errors later, Sinner was out of an early hole, and his match-winning momentum had clicked into gear.

Tiafoe only won five return points against Sinner's first serve and six against his second, according to Infosys ATP Stats. On the other side of the net, Sinner won more than triple that amount, with 34 return points won. Fourteen were against first serves, and 20 were against second serves.

The real problem for Tiafoe was simply getting Sinner’s serves back in the court.

First Serve Returns In

• Sinner = 59% (27/46)
• Tiafoe = 33% (11/33)
• Tour Average = 62%

Second Serve Returns In

• Sinner = 89% (32/36)
• Tiafoe = 70% (16/23)
• Tour Average = 82%

Sinner Deuce Court Serve Location
Sinner, the first player to qualify for November's Nitto ATP Finals, opted for a confusing mix of locations with his first serve in the Deuce court. Ten went out wide, just one at the body, and eight down the T. Sinner won 9/10 out wide and 6/8 down the middle. All second serves were safely directed at the backhand jam location, where he won 9/11. With Sinner hitting his spots, the Italian only fell behind in the point score in two of his 10 service games, while Tiafoe had to play from behind in four of his.

Sinner Ad Court Serve Location
When Sinner needs a point in the Ad court, expect a booming, flat first serve out wide. He directed 10 first serves there, winning every point. The Italian went down the T only four times, winning three. Ten of the 12 second serves were once again at the backhand jam location. Overall, he dropped just two second serve points in the Ad court.

Return Position
Tiafoe, who returned to the Top 20 of the PIF ATP Rankings by reaching the final, hit all 20 of his first-serve returns standing within two metres of the baseline. This was in stark contrast to Sinner, who hit 93 per cent (38/41) of his first serve returns back behind that two-metre mark.

Tiafoe tried to attack Sinner’s second serve with his feet, standing inside the baseline to make contact with 39 per cent (9/21) of his second-serve returns. The other 14 contact points were in close proximity right behind the baseline. Tiafoe was trying to create pressure with his court position but never really delivered that pressure to the other side of the net. Sinner opted to mix his second-serve return contact point, sometimes being one metre inside the baseline, while also turning up more than four metres behind the baseline for eight returns.

This match slipped through Tiafoe’s fingers with the two failed break point opportunities in the opening game. It slid even quicker away from him in the second set as Sinner dialed in his serve locations and rolled to a straight-sets victory.

Sinner now leads Tiafoe 4-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

Did You Know?
The 2024 Cincinnati Open attracted a record attendance of 205,068, marking the first time the tournament drew more than 200,000 fans as a single-week event.