Sinner off to a strong start in Halle
In his first match since his heartbreaking defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in the Roland Garros final, Jannik Sinner returned to winning ways with a 7-5, 6-3 triumph against home favourite Yannick Hanfmann in Halle.
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Sinner, the defending champion at the grass ATP 500, saved both break points he faced en route to a 92-minute victory inside OWL Arena.
“I’m very happy,” Sinner said. “He is a great server and a great base-liner, so breaking him is very difficult on this surface. I’m very happy how I handled the tough situations mentally. The first set could have gone into a tie-break and then anything can happen.
“I’m very happy about my performance. First matches are never easy on grass, and also second and third matches, so let’s see what’s coming in the next round. I think tomorrow I have the day off, which is good, because the body feels different on this surface. Let’s see how I’m going to react.”
Sinner’s serve was the foundation for his win against qualifier Hanfmann. The 23 year-old won 84 percent (37/44) of points behind his first delivery to improve to 19-2 for 2025. With his win against the World No. 138, Sinner increased his winning streak against opponents outside the Top 20 to 66 matches.
The top seed faces a tough test in the second round, where he faces 2023 champion Alexander Bublik. He leads Bublik 4-1 head-to-head, with the Kazakhstani’s only victory coming via retirement during his Halle title run two years ago.
“The unexpected,” said Sinner, when asked he expected from his clash with Bublik. ”He’s a great player. A great talent. A huge talent, actually, and grass is his favourite surface. He beat me here in Halle, he won [the trophy] here in Halle, so it’s for sure a place he loves to play. I’m trying to stay calm mentally and trying to see what I can reach. He’s a great talent, a great server and he can do whatever he wants. It’s hopefully going to be a good match.”
Fourth seed Andrey Rublev and seventh seed Tomas Machac also advanced in Halle. Rublev eased past qualifier Sebastian Ofner 6-3, 6-4 for his first win on grass since he reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 2023.
The World No. 14 will next take on Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who overcame Pedro Martinez 6-1, 6-3.
Machac held off lucky loser Jesper de Jong for a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 triumph to set a second-round clash with Fabian Marozsan.
Alex Michelsen recovered from a tricky start to upset fifth seed Francisco Cerundolo 2-6, 7-5, 6-4.
The American will meet Stefanos Tsitsipas next in Germany.
