Jannik Sinner 'punched in the face' by Italian Open opponent but still reaches final

is into the final of the Italian Open despite being "punched in the face" by Tommy Paul during their semi-final showdown. On his return from a three-month doping ban, the Italian came from a set down to defeat his American opponent and secure a showdown on Sunday against his great rival Carlos Alcaraz.

Sinner had to fight hard for his 26th consecutive win, rallying from a difficult first set to clinch a 1-6 6-0 6-3 victory over Paul. This will be Sinner's first encounter with Alcaraz this season with the world No.1's campaign having been heavily interrupted by his suspension.

Their last meeting was at the China Open final in October, where Alcaraz came from behind to take the title. Alcaraz triumphed in all three of their clashes last season, accounting for half of Sinner's total losses for 2024.

Sinner told Sky Sports afterwards: "I just tried to stay there mentally. Today the conditions were completely different. It's colder, the ball is heavier, I struggled with that a bit and he broke me straight away which was a punch in my face but I tried to stay there mentally.

"Winning this one game for me was important, tennis can change quickly. Today I showed every moment is crucial and I'm very happy about that, and to be here in the final. If I want to win on Sunday, I have to play my best tennis. Incredible to be here in the final."

Despite a crushing 6-0 6-1 victory over Casper Ruud in the previous round in Rome, Sinner started surprisingly slow in his semi-final, allowing Paul to capitalise.

However, the 23-year-old bounced back to take the second set 6-0 and force a decider. With the support of the home crowd, Sinner quickly took a 3-0 lead before being pulled back to 3-2. Nevertheless, he eventually sealed victory in one hour and 44 minutes.

Alcaraz soared into the final with a victory against another Italian, Lorenzo Musetti, as he came from behind to secure a straight sets earlier on Friday.