"Jannik Sinner looked beatable against Jack Draper" - Nick Kyrgios advises Taylor Fritz on how to exploit Italian's weaknesses in US Open 2024 final
Jannik Sinner and Taylor Fritz will contest the 2024 US Open men's singles final, which if former top-10 player Nick Kyrgios’ words are anything to go by, is set to be a cracking affair. The Aussie previewed the season’s final men’s Grand Slam match in a series of social media posts.
Kyrgios, who has been part of the commentating and presenters’ team at the US Open, noted in a post on ‘X’ that Fritz will need to serve at the highest level and win as many points as he can on the second serve return when he steps out for the final against the World No. 1.
The Aussie also took note of Sinner’s aggressive brand of tennis, saying he will look to dictate play from the baseline and move his opponent around, especially after Fritz’s last five-set marathon against compatriot Frances Tiafoe.
"[Taylor Fritz] needs to have one of his best serving days," Nick Kyrgios wrote. "[Jannik Sinner] will be looking to be aggressive and dictate play whenever he can to try and move the big American around, especially after 5 sets with foe. Fritz needs to win high percentage of Sinner's second serve chances."
Kyrgios, however, was quick to note that Sinner looked beatable in his semifinal against Jack Draper after a near-flawless performance in an earlier match against another American, Tommy Paul.
He advised Fritz, who will be playing in his first Grand Slam final, to get the home crowd involved and play aggressively from the baseline.
"[Jannik Sinner] looked amazing against Paul, but beatable against Draper. I think the Italian is heavy favorite for the final, [Taylor Fritz] definitely needs to get crowd involved. Fritz - needs red line tennis from the baseline whenever he can get on top. Needs to. Should be a good one," Nick Kyrgios wrote in a separate post.
Jannik Sinner and Taylor Fritz's road to the US Open final
Jannik Sinner overcame a slow start to his 2024 US Open campaign to steamroll into the second week with the loss of just one set (in his opener against Mackenzie McDonald). He needed four sets to get past Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals but came through in three close sets against Jack Draper in the semifinals.
Taylor Fritz, meanwhile, has been pushed to four or five sets in his last three matches. The American needed four sets to win against Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud before being pushed all the way to five by Frances Tiafoe in the semifinals.
Sinner and Fritz have split their past two meetings, with the American winning their first encounter at Indian Wells in 2021. The Italian levelled the head-to-head last year at the same venue.