02 October 2023 , 21:57
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Jannik Sinner had to vomit into a wheelie bin during his China Open quarter-final victory over Grigor Dimitrov.
On Monday, rising Italian star Sinner was clearly in a bad way but managed to recover and beat Dimitrov 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, booking a mouthwatering matchup against world No.1 and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz, who he's long been tipped to forge a rivalry with. Sinner, 22, had already been unwell during his first-round clash with British ace Dan Evans and failed to fully recover in time to face 32-year-old Bulgarian Dimitrov.
During a changeover, Sinner put his head underneath the lid of a bin and was sick, having developed a bad cold in Beijing. The conditions in the Chinese capital won't have helped him, with humidity at 70 per cent.
Still, the 22-year-old shone and broke Dimitrov zero during the last game. "A very tough evening, the level was really high," Sinner explained. "I didn't feel very good, maybe I ate something wrong. At one point I also threw up a little, but I'm happy with how I handled the situation."
"I had one game 15-40, one game 0-40 where I made some unforced errors and he also played quite aggressive," he later added. "This is tennis. Obviously it's easier if you take those chances. In the third set I thought I handled the situation well, especially when serving at a tough moment at 4-2. I'm very happy to be in the next round."
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Now he'll be hoping to feel shipshape ahead of what promises to be a blockbuster clash between him and fellow youngster Alcaraz. They're due to face each other on Tuesday, battling it out for a place in the final against either Daniil Medvedev or Alexander Zverev this Sunday.
Have your say! Who'll win the China Open? Give us your prediction in the comments section.
Jannik Sinner showed great resilience in Beijing (JADE GAO/AFP via Getty Images)Second seed Medvedev also had to dig in to beat Ugo Humbert in his quarter-final, saying: "I'm happy that I managed to raise my level in important moments, except a game in the second set. It's great that I managed to still find in this tough match these moments of consistency, which is enough to win.
"That's what you have to do. I'm happy to be in the semi-finals. When you come to the tournament, you always want to go as far as possible. Happy to still be here tomorrow. The further we go, the tougher the matches, the tougher the opponents. That's normal."
Upcoming opponent Zverev said ahead of their fifth meeting in 2023: "Every time we play, it's a battle. I'm looking forward to what's to come. He's playing great tennis. I hope I can bring my A game."