China Open 2023: Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (1) Carlos Alcaraz vs (6) Jannik Sinner
Date: October 3, 2023
Tournament: China Open 2023
Round: Semifinal
Venue: National Tennis Center, Beijing, China
Category: ATP 500
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $3,633,875
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime | Canada - TSN
Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner preview
Top 10 players Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have set up a semifinal showdown at the 2023 China Open on Tuesday.
Alcaraz scored routine wins over Yannick Hanfmann and Lorenzo Musetti to set up a quarterfinal clash against Casper Ruud. The Spaniard fell behind 3-0 in the first set, but turned the tables on his opponent as he went on a five game run to go 5-3 up.
Alcaraz clinched the opener soon after that by serving it out. He didn't relinquish his hold over the match and broke Ruud's serve twice in the second set to score a 6-4, 6-2 victory.
Sinner, meanwhile, defeated Dan Evans and Yoshihito Nishioka to make the last eight, where Grigor Dimitrov awaited him. The Italian broke his opponent's serve at the start of the match and maintained his headstart until the end of the first set to claim it.
The two were evenly matched for the better part of the second set, but Dimitrov pulled away in the end as he bagged the last three games of the set to take it. Sinner recovered from the second set stumble and broke the Bulgarian's serve on two occasions in the third set to win the match 6-4, 3-6, 6-2.
Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner head-to-head
The two have split their previous six meetings evenly to tie the head-to-head at 3-3. Sinner won their most recent encounter at the 2023 Miami Open in three sets.
Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner prediction
Alcaraz overcame a slow start to send Ruud packing and reach his 12th semifinal in 14 events this season. The Spaniard won 71% of his first serve points and struck 30 winners in contrast to 14 unforced errors.
Sinner was also made to work by Dimitrov to earn his win. The Italian played a clean match with twice as many winners compared to unforced errors. However, he went 3/15 on break points, missing out on eight of those in the second set.
Sinner will need to be more careful as wasting so many chances against a player like Alcaraz could prove to be costly. The duo are involved in one of the tour's most engaging rivalries at the moment. They have already faced off twice this season, with each emerging victorious once.
Both give it their all and go toe-to-toe with their shotmaking. Alcaraz's endurance and athleticism at times turns the tide in his favor, given Sinner's myriad of physical issues. Both have their weak spots, but their numerous strengths easily outweigh those.
Sinner has been pushed to three sets twice this week, while Alcaraz hasn't dropped more than seven games in any of his matches. Given how they've played so far, the latter has a slight edge to gain the upper hand in this rivalry once again.
Pick: Carlos Alcaraz to win in three sets.