World No. 1 Jannik Sinner powered into the US Open semifinals on Wednesday in New York, defeating compatriot Lorenzo Musetti 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in the first-ever all-Italian men’s Grand Slam quarterfinal.
The reigning champion advanced after a dominant display, keeping alive his bid to defend the title and become the first man since Roger Federer in 2008 to win back-to-back US Opens.
“It was a great performance, very solid. I started the match very well,” Sinner said after improving his head-to-head record to 16-0 against Italian opponents. Despite their friendship, he noted that once the match began, focus took over until the handshake at the end.
The defending champion moves on to face Canadian 25th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semifinals. Although Auger-Aliassime has a 2-1 career edge, Sinner crushed him in Cincinnati last month, dropping only two games.
The victory also gave Sinner his 86th Grand Slam win, tying Italian great Nicola Pietrangeli. Already a winner of the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year, he is chasing a third major of the season, having fallen to Carlos Alcaraz in a dramatic French Open final.
Sinner dominated early by taking the first five games and sealing the opening set in just 27 minutes. Musetti showed resistance in the second, but a costly double fault at 4-all gave Sinner the break he needed. In the third, Musetti created multiple break chances but failed to capitalize, allowing Sinner to complete a commanding win.