Sinner swarms Shelton to reach 2nd AO final

Jannik Sinner thwarted the hazy upset hopes of Ben Shelton as the Italian schooled the American 7-6 (2), 6-2, 6-2 on Friday to book a second straight final at the Australian Open.

World No. 1 Sinner will have a chance to double up at Melbourne Park after lifting his first Grand Slam trophy here a year ago. 

He backed that up by winning the US Open four months ago as well as the year-end Finals at home in Turin before leading Italy to a second straight Davis Cup title in November .

Shelton had a pair of chances in the first set to make an impression, but Sinner nullified both of the American’s set points to take the match by the throat.

After three hours, Sinner emerged into the Sunday final against world No. 2 Alexander Zverev, who advanced when Novak Djokovic had to wiut with a muscle tear after losing the first set 7-6 (5).

Sunday’s final will be the fourth time Sinner and Zverev have played at a major, with the German holding a 2-1 edge at the Slams.

Sinner needed nearly two and three-quarter hours to move into the Sunday final, hitting 23 winners and profitting from 55 Shelton unforced errors.

The Italian blamed tension of the match for his shaky start to the semi-final, where he occasionally looked weak and winded after points.

“It was a very tough first set, but a very crucial one,.” he said. “His serving today was not his best. I think we both returned better than we served.”

Sinner said escaping with the opening set “always gives confidence.”

“There was a lot of tension for both of us, I’m happy with how I handled the situation. I’m happy to be in the finals again.”

Sinner confessed to suffering with minor cramping on the way to victory but added: “He was suffering also. I tried to move him around, staying more aggressive helped a lot.

Sinner is the youngest man to reach multiple Australian Open finals since Jim Courier in 1992-1993.

Main photo:- Jannik Sinner celebrates as he reaches repeat AO final – by Pete Staples ATPTour.com