“The match will take place on January 24, the approximate start time of the meeting is 10:30 Kyiv time”, — write: sport.ua
Yannick Sinner
The Italian tennis player’s semi-final appearance at this major was quite expected, Sinner is the world’s number one racket and the reigning winner of the tournament. Yannick confidently reached the semi-finals, there were problems with the Norwegian Rune, whom he managed to beat in four sets.
The Italian once again confirms that he is very strong on hard surfaces. His main competitor Carlos Alcaraz has already been eliminated, but the experienced and motivated Djokovic remains, and Zverev is a serious opponent, although Shelton still needs to be beaten.
I will note Sinner’s excellent technique and strong endurance, he is like a wall against which all balls bounce and return to the opposite half of the court. The Italian is excellent when serving the second serve, which is more than half of the goals, from 55 to 80%, depending on the match.
It is also possible to note the player’s activity, in terms of the number of winners, he was second only to Harry in the first round, but there the opponent made a lot of mistakes due to his aggressive style. Sinner knows how to find calm in stressful situations and win key draws. The tennis player is only 23 years old, but there is a sense of maturity and high game intelligence.
Getty Images/Global Images Ukraine. Yannick Sinner Ben Shelton
The American can already consider his performance as a success in this tournament, reaching the semifinals, which is a repeat of his best result at the helmets, which he achieved at the 2023 US Open.
Shelton’s grid was not the most difficult, he did not face any player from the top 10, the highest ranking was the Italian Lorenzo Musetti, 15th in the classification, he managed to beat him in four sets. The American spent the most time on the court in the last match against another Italian Lorenzo Sonego, the match lasted almost 4 hours, in other cases he managed in less than three hours.
With all due respect to the American, one cannot say about him: “this guy is a future legend”, after all, it is too early to count Shelton among the top tennis players. The athlete feels good on the back line, however, often his level depends on his mood, and his behavior often does not look like a champion. The American is 22 years old, it cannot be said that the “golden years” are ahead, because at this age Sinner and Alcaraz are already taking helmets.
The first serve is very important for Shelton, in the last three matches he has hit the first ball on the court about 70% of the time, if the first serve goes, then he wins more than 70% of the draws, and in some games this figure exceeded 80%. And yet, I believe that this guy has not yet grown out of the “pants” of a middle peasant, although he has potential.
Getty Images/Global Images Ukraine. Ben Shelton Personal meetings
Tennis players played each other five times, in four cases Sinner won. Last season, the athletes crossed paths three times, in all cases the Italian won.
Forecast
In the confrontation between two young tennis players, Sinner is a big favorite, Shelton can endure and fight to the last, but it is not enough to win over the first racket of the world. Bookmakers give a ridiculous odds of 1.06 for the Italian to win, compared to 11 for Shelton. I expect at least minimal resistance from the American, so I bet on a total of more than 31.5 games at 1.65.
Yannick Sinner 01/24/2025 –
10:30 a.m
Ben Shelton