Sinner Dominates Dimitrov to Land Miami Open Title
Jannik Sinner is the 2024 Miami Open champion after a dominant 6-3, 6-1 victory over Grigor Dimitrov.
The Italian previously had to settle for the runners-up crown in 2021 and 2023, but he was a different beast this year and made it third time lucky, cruising to his second Masters 1000 title in just 1 hour and 14 minutes.
I’m really proud of the result. I started off struggling a little bit this week. I haven’t had so much time to adapt on this court, so I knew in the beginning that it was going to be tough. As the tournament went on, I felt better and better. Today’s performance was really, really good. I’m just proud of how I handled the situation. It was not easy, so it was a very, very good two weeks. Staying in the present moment. What it has been, it has been. I try to improve… And also enjoying the moment. This is a special moment. You never know if this is the last time or not. So you have to enjoy this for one day, and now a new chapter is coming, clay-court season is coming, so completely different. Let’s see how I will play from now on. But for sure, the hard-court season until now has been very good. Sinner on his win in Miami.
You can see the match stats and highlights below.
Quick Match Recap
The first set kicked off competitively, and Dimitrov fashioned the first break point when leading 2-1.
However, he tried to skip around a backhand to hit an inside-out forehand and didn’t quite get the footwork right. The ball drifted into the tramlines. Sinner went on to hold for 2-2.
Another similar inside-out forehand attempt in the next game, along with a poorly executed drop shot, got Dimitrov in trouble at 15-40. Sinner converted his second break point with a passing shot up the line to lead 3-2.
From there, the Italian took charge, capturing the set 6-3. He carried that momentum into the second set with more precise hitting, which frustrated Dimitrov from the baseline.
An early break put Sinner up 3-1, and it was all she wrote as he reeled off the next three games, not dropping a point behind his second serve in the set to capture his second Masters 1000 title.
Match Stats
Grigor Dimitrov | Jannik Sinner | |
---|---|---|
Aces | 6 | 4 |
Double Faults | 1 | 1 |
1st Serve Percentage | 64% | 56% |
1st Serve Points Won | 59% (19/32) | 88% (21/24) |
2nd Serve Points Won | 50% (9/18) | 63% (12/19) |
Break Points Saved | 50% (4/8) | 100% (1/1) |
1st Return Points Won | 13% (3/24) | 41% (13/32) |
2nd Return Points Won | 37% (7/19) | 50% (9/18) |
Break Points Converted | 0% (0/1) | 50% (4/8) |
Winners | 18 | 15 |
Unforced Errors | 17 | 8 |
Net Points Won | 64% (9/14) | 100% (6/6) |
Max Points In Row | 4 | 6 |
Service Points Won | 56% (28/50) | 77% (33/43) |
Return Points Won | 23% (10/43) | 44% (22/50) |
Total Points Won | 41% (38/93) | 59% (55/93) |
Max Games In Row | 1 | 5 |
Service Games Won | 50% (4/8) | 100% (8/8) |
Return Games Won | 0% (0/8) | 50% (4/8) |
Total Games Won | 25% (4/16) | 75% (12/16) |
Highlights
Thoughts on the Final
It was a tough match for Dimitrov, who played like a guy who felt he’d missed his big chance after missing that breakpoint in game three.
In the opening exchanges, the early signs looked good for the Bulgarian, as Sinner made a few errors and wasn’t quite in rhythm.
However, once Sinner had saved that break point, he went into lockdown mode and didn’t give Dimitrov any more chances.
Crisp ball striking and good movement, along with neutralising Dimitrov’s first serve, meant he never looked in much trouble;
With the win, Sinner is up to second in the ATP rankings, and on hardcourt, he’s the best player in the world right now with 22 wins on the surface this year, with just one loss.
As for Dimitrov, he’s back inside the top 10, and he’s playing some of his best-ever tennis. Overall, I thought he looked a little less explosive than his previous couple of matches (check his footwork on the missed breakpoint), and he was never really into it mentally, having to play reactive tennis and come up with ridiculous shot-making to stay in the points.
In some ways, it reminded me of a Federer vs Djokovic match when Federer didn’t turn up—there were some fun points, but overall, it was one-sided, and I think he’d have a better shot vs Sinner on clay courts.
What did you guys think of the final? Let me know in the comments.