With a double 7-6, the Italian eliminated the Brazilian and now faces another tennis promise in the quarterfinals: 20-year-old American Learner Tien
Brazilian tennis player João Fonseca fought until the end, but ended up being eliminated by Jannik Sinner by 7-6 (8/6) and 7-6 (7/4) on Tuesday (10), in a close and exciting match which took the Italian to the quarterfinals of Indian Wells.
The first duel between the number two in the world, Sinner, and the 19-year-old young man from Rio lived up to expectationswith a superb performance that drew constant applause from the large Brazilian crowd.
Sinner will now face another rising star, the American Learner Tienaged 20, for a place in the semi-finals.
Fonseca faced the Italian in a tense first set, but failed to capitalize on his only break of serve chance, while Sinner wasted two.
Some uncharacteristic errors from Sinner helped the Brazilian take a 6-3 lead in the tiebreak, but the Italian fought back, saving a set point with an ace to start a five-point comeback and close out the first set.
In the second set, Sinner seemed to be heading towards a quiet victory with a 4-2 lead, but João Fonseca shone and made it clear that he would not give up. He broke Sinner’s serve in the ninth game and kept the score at 5-5 before the second tiebreak.
An ace gave Fonseca a 4-3 lead in the tiebreak, but Sinner once again showed his quality, winning four points in a row and sealing the victory with a masterful right return.
“I felt the key was to try to be as aggressive as possible,” said Sinner, who is seeking his first title at the prestigious Masters 1000 in the California desert. “João has an incredible talent. He is very powerful on both sides. He was serving very well. Maybe he relaxed a little at the end of the second set, but I am very happy to have advanced”, he added.
His next opponent, Learner Tien, eliminated Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina with 4-6, 6-1 and 7-6 (7/4).
Indian Wells Tuesday Results
Men’s singles – Round of 16
- Arthur Fils (FRA/N.30) x Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN/N.9) 6-3, 7-6 (11/9);
- Alexander Zverev (GER/N.4) x Frances Tiafoe (USA/N.21) 6-3, 6-4;
- Learner Tien (USA/N.25) x Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP/N.18) 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7/4);
- Jannik Sinner (ITA/N.2) x João Fonseca (BRA) 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/4).
*With information from AFP
