US Open tennis 2024, Jannik Sinner wins men's final over Taylor Fritz, scores, result

Jannik Sinner is the US Open men's singles champion for 2024 thanks to a dominant win over Taylor Fritz in the final.

The Italian superstar and world No.1 has now claimed the Australian Open and the US Open in the same year.

On Monday morning he beat American fan favourite Fritz 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 to clinch the grand slam title at Flushing Meadows.

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Sinner had to overcome a doping saga at the start of the tournament and then an injury in his semi final.

But after winning Monday's final, he also revealed a family health issue which has been troubling him throughout the tournament.

Jannik Sinner of Italy celebrates with the winners trophy after defeating Taylor Fritz in the US Open final. Getty

The 23-year-old looked emotional as he accepted the accolades on stage and it soon became apparent why.

"The last period of my career was really not easy," he said.

"I love tennis, I practice a lot for these kind of stages, but I also realise that off the court there is a life.

"I would like to dedicate this title to my aunt, because she is really not feeling well health wise. I'm really not sure how much (longer) I'll have her in my life.

"It's so nice that I can share a positive moment still with her. She was a very important person to my life, and she still is.

"If there would be the biggest wish, I wish everyone the best health... unfortunately it's not possible."

Jannik Sinner dedicated his US Open victory to his sick aunt. Nine

Sinner extended his current winning streak to 11 matches and improved to 55-5 with a tour-high six titles in 2024.

That includes a 35-2 mark on hard courts, the surface used at both the Australian Open and US Open, and he is the first man since Guillermo Vilas in 1977 to win his first two grand slam trophies in the same season, something such greats as Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Federer never accomplished.

Less than a week before competition began at Flushing Meadows, the world found out that Sinner had tested positive twice for anabolic steroids in March but was cleared because his use was ruled unintentional — the banned substance entered his system via a massage from a team member he later fired.

As expected, Fritz enjoyed something of a home-court advantage on a cool afternoon under a nearly cloudless sky.

In a celebrity-filled crowd that included Taylor Swift and her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, some spectators occasionally engaged in chants of "U-S-A!" between games or rose to their feet whenever he managed to pick up what felt in the moment like a crucial point.

Fritz is not the sort to show much in the way of emotion, often greeting those instances with a little shake of his neon-colored racquet. When he was broken in the match's first game, an inauspicious start that included a bad miss of a smash, Fritz grinned sarcastically.

Sinner showed some jitters, too, and when he played a loose game that included a double-fault and other misses, that helped Fritz break back to eventually lead 3-2 after 20 minutes.

That was pretty much the last significant highlight for Fritz or his fans until three-all in the third set, when he smacked an overhead winner to get to 15-30, punched the air and screamed, "Let's go!".

People in the stands rose, applauding and shouting. After Fritz deposited a volley winner to earn a break point a minute later, he celebrated in the same fashion, and thousands around him went wild.

Sinner then double-faulted, putting Fritz in front 4-3.

But when he tried to serve out the set at 5-4, Fritz buckled enough to let Sinner pull even by breaking. Sinner used a drop shot to lure Fritz to the front court, then slid a passing shot that Fritz volleyed into the net. Fritz bounced off his racquet off the court. Sinner loped to the towel box, not even smiling.

About 10 minutes later, the victory was Sinner's thanks to a closing four-game run. When it was over, Sinner raised his arms, threw his head back and closed his eyes.

He generally asserts himself during matches in what perhaps is best described as a rather casual way.

2024 US Open champ Jannik Sinner, of Italy. AP

His style is less spectacular than solid, less magical than metronomic.

Either way, it was masterful, using his long limbs and squeaking, sliding sneakers to get to everything before aiming high-speed shot after shot right near lines — and usually succeeding.

Neither player seemed all that interested in venturing forward unless forced to, instead content to ply their forehands and backhands from the back of the court.

That's decidedly Sinner's territory.

By the end, Sinner, the second Italian to win a singles title at the US Open, joining 2015 women's champion Flavia Pennetta, had an impressive ledger: just 21 unforced errors, 13 fewer than Fritz, and 23 winners.

- with AP

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