Jannik Sinner has contested all four Grand Slam finals this year, securing two titles while Carlos Alcaraz prevailed in the other two encounters.
Jannik Sinner advanced closer to reclaiming the world number one ranking with a victory over Ben Shelton at the Paris Masters.
Following Carlos Alcaraz’s unexpected second-round loss to Cameron Norrie, the Italian now has the opportunity to surpass the Spaniard by winning the ATP Masters 1,000 event in the French capital.
Sinner reached the Paris semi-finals for the first time after defeating Shelton 6-3, 6-3, marking his seventh consecutive win over the American player.
The 24-year-old is set to face third seed Alexander Zverev, the defending champion who survived two match points to overcome Daniil Medvedev in a thrilling three-set match.
“I’m very happy,” Sinner told Sky Sports. “It was a very, very tough match.
“At times you don’t have a lot of control because of his incredible serving, but today I felt like I was returning very well. Also, from the back of the court I played very solid and very aggressive.”
Sinner briefly lost his serve in the second set but quickly regained control, securing victory over Shelton, 23, in under 70 minutes.
“At the moment I’m not thinking about the ranking,” added the Australian Open and Wimbledon champion. “It’s a consequence of how I’m playing.
“Making the semis here in Paris means a lot. It has been a very long season with some great, great results and I never take these results for granted.”
Sinner will now compete against Zverev in the semi-finals after the German player’s comeback victory against Medvedev, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5).
Alexander Bublik will make his debut in a Masters semi-final after defeating Australian sixth seed Alex de Minaur 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 7-5, leading to emotional scenes for Kazakhstan’s top player.
The 13th seed is set to face Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, the ninth seed, who ended the impressive run of Shanghai Masters champion Valentin Vacherot with a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win.
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