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Budding star Sinner tops Bautista to reach Miami Open final

Sports Desk, Apr 2 (efe-epa).- Italy’s Jannik Sinner defeated Roberto Bautista Agut 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 on Friday to advance to the men’s final at the Miami Open.

Sinner, 19, will be only the fourth teenager in the 36-year history of the event to play for the title, following in the footsteps of Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Though he has two wins under his belt, the 2020 Sofia Open and the 2021 Great Ocean Road Open in Melbourne, this marks the first time the Italian has reached the final of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

After winning the first set, Bautista failed to convert four break points with the score at 3-3 in the second and Sinner built on that escape.

The youngster hit five aces, compared with two for the 32-year-old world No. 12, and took four out of eight points, while Bautista was 3-for-10.

The result means the Spaniard will have to wait for another chance to win his 10th title. Bautista, who last hoisted a trophy at Doha in 2019, has reached two finals so far in 2021, in Doha and Montpellier, losing on both occasions.

Sinner had already beaten Bautista twice before, including at last month’s Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

“It feels unbelievable,” Sinner said on-court after Friday’s battle. “It’s always tough to play against Roberto. Two weeks ago we played in Dubai, we had a tough one there. Now, a tough one here. I’m very happy about reaching the final here in Miami.”

Russia’s Andrey Rublev will face Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in the other semifinal Friday night. EFE apa/dr

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