Defending champion and top seed Jannik Sinner has reached his second consecutive Australian Open final by beating USA’s Ben Shelton in straight sets on Friday (Jan 24). Sinner, having beaten Daniil Medvedev in the 2024 final, will now take on Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s final at the Rod Laver Arena. Sinner won 7-6, 6-2, 6-2 as he bids for his third Grand Slam title in the last 12 months.
Sinner in second straight final
In news for doping issues in 2024, Sinner had a no-nonsense approach on Friday as he took control of the tightly contested first set. The Italian served three aces and won 76 per cent points on his first serves, highlighting his dominance on the court. Both Shelton and Sinner broke each other’s serve on two occasions during the opening set before it went into the tiebreak.
It was the Italian who came out on top in the seven-point tiebreak, where he dropped only two points.
While it was a tight contest in the opening set, things went from bad to worse for Shelton in the second set as he won only two games. Sinner’s dominance continued in the third set as he again won the set, dropping just two games.
The final will be Sinner’s third in a Grand Slam, having won the previous two at the Australian Open and the US Open in 2024.
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Zverev in the final
Sinner will now face Alexander Zverev in the final of the Australian Open 2025 after he received a walkover in his semifinal against Novak Djokovic. The German won the opening set in a tiebreaker and looked on course for the second set before the Serbian decided to pull out. Interestingly, this will mean the final will see the top seed battle the second seed in Sunday’s final at the Rod Laver Arena.