Tallon Griekspoor was right there with Jannik Sinner for the duration of Sunday’s third-round affair with the top-seeded Italian. That, in and of itself, is an accomplishment, and when the chips were down over the course of the pair’s seventh head-to-head meeting, it was the Dutchmen who held on long enough to notch a hard-earned victory.
Sinner took the first set, but eventually wilted in the heat and humidity and ended up falling 6-7(3), 7-5, 3-2 RET.
The stunning victory for the 29-year-old world No.31 over the defending champion marks his best ever by ranking, and snaps Sinner’s six-match winning streak over Griekspoor and his six-match Shanghai streak as well.
“First of all, this is definitely not the way you want to win,” said Griekspoor. “Brutal conditions here in Shanghai all week. I felt we were still a little bit lucky to play in the evening, but two hours and 36 minutes on the clock, middle of the third set. Sorry for him, I wish him a speedy recovery.”
Though it ended in bizarre fashion, with Sinner completely hobbled by a devastating episode of cramping, it would not have ended that way had it not been for the inspired way of Griekspoor.
Things were dead even after 12 games, but it was Sinner who turned on the afterburners in the opening set tiebreak. Exhibit A was the combo that gave him a 4-1 lead. A perfect drop shot followed up by a lethal cross court forehand winner that was struck at full bore and exquisitely angled. A more perfect shot could not have been imagined.
“I think first set was high quality serving from both,” Griekspoor said. “I thought he played an unbelievable tiebreak, he hit a couple of lines and served really, really well.
Two points later and Sinner had five set points to work with. Griekspoor, who played well enough to take the set, saved a pair, but ran out of good fortune on the third.
Griekspoor earned a break point in the first game of the second set (saved by Sinner) then pulled a few rabbits out of the hat to survive a difficult opening service game in set two, saving three break points to hold. A statement of intent from the Dutchman.
The Dutchmen showed his steel again while serving at 3-4, as he put on a serving clinic to dig himself out of a 0-40 hole.
“I got a little bit lucky at 3-4 in the second where I served at love-40 and served my way out of it – sometimes you need a little bit of luck to win these kinds of matches.”
Moments later Griekspoor had his own triple break point and he made it work, converting the first break of the match at the two hour and four-minute mark as his backhand pass forced Sinner to net a volley.
He served out the middle set moments later.
As if the challenge wasn’t already enough for Sinner to deal with, cramping kicked in early in the third set, severely limiting the Italian’s movement. He was clearly hobbled, desperately trying to stretch and shake out his right leg, hunching over after a double-fault at 2-2, 0-15, and again afer he netted a forehand on the next point.
Things went south in the game. Another double-fault and an unforced error, and Sinner needed help from the trainer to get to his chair, with Griekspoor now up a break and preparing to serve at 3-2.
He tried to get back to the court, but had nothing left. He called Griekspoor over for a handshake, ending the contest in two hours and 36 minutes.
Griekspoor said he is relieved to be playing better after a long losing streak – seven matches and two and a half months – in Shanghai.
“Had two and a half months without winning a match,” he said. “I struggled a lot in the US, played really poorly there, mentally and physically. I lost first round in Chengdu and Beijing but my game was actually better and better, I felt like it was slowly coming, and I feel like two days ago, first-round win was very important for me just to get rid of that losing streak.
“He beat me every time, a lot of close matches and close sets, so I’m very pleased with the way I hung in there in the second set.”
