rewrite this title Jannik Sinner on song with Vienna waltz at the Erste Bank Open to maintain year-end No 1 hopes

Jannik Sinner was on song with a Vienna waltz over beleaguered opponent Daniel Altmaier at the Erste Bank Open to maintain his year-end No 1 hopes.

Sinner wasted little time in soaring past Germany’s Altmaier 6-0 6-2 to record his quickest victory of 2025.

The top seed and 2023 Vienna champion overwhelmed Altmaier, racing to the finish in just 58 minutes.

Sinner, who was forced to retire from the third round of his Shanghai title defence earlier this month, also extended his winning streak on indoor hard courts to 17 matches.

“I feel like in the first set everything was working very well,” said Sinner.

“On indoor courts, you have to be very careful. If your opponent starts to serve well, it’s very difficult to break. But I’m very happy about today’s performance, starting the tournament in a very positive way, not only gamewise but feeling-wise.”

Sinner will next meet fellow countryman Flavio Cobolli, who defeated Czech Tomas Machac 7-6 (8-6) 6-2, while last week’s Almaty champion Daniil Medvedev overcame Nuno Borges 6-4 6-7 (9-7) 6-2 to keep alive his late-season push to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

Italy’s Matteo Berrettini defeated Australia’s Alexei Popyrin in straight sets 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in one hour and 36 minutes to set up a second-round match against British No 2 Cameron Norrie on Thursday.

Tale of the Tape

The race for year-end No 1

The Italian is competing at the ATP 500 event and can therefore add 500 points to his ranking total this week. Should he triumph, he would gain 500 points on rival Carlos Alcaraz, who is not in action.

He currently trails Alcaraz by 2,540 points but if Sinner lifts the Vienna trophy for the second time, he will trail the Spaniard by 2,040 points entering Paris, where he could narrow the deficit even more.

Both stars are scheduled to play the Rolex Paris Masters (max 1,000 points) and the Nitto ATP Finals (max 1,500 points). Sinner will need to earn every point he can the rest of the season and hope Alcaraz – who is 67-7 in 2025 – does not maintain his performance.

Mboko through to the last eight in Tokyo

Victoria Mboko booked her place in the quarter-finals of the Pan Pacific Open with a dominant win over Eva Lys.

The 19-year-old new hope of Canadian tennis outclassed the German qualifier 6-1 6-1 in a swift 55 minutes in Tokyo.

Mboko won 87 per cent of her points off the first serve and planted five aces against Lys, who just did not have an answer against the world No 23.

“I wanted to just be myself and try to play very aggressively,” Mboko said after the match.

“I didn’t really have much of a game plan. I just wanted to play freely and just be very positive with myself on court. So, I think I checked all the marks today, and it all worked out at the end of the day.”

Mboko – who ended 2024 ranked 350th – stunned the tennis world by winning the National Bank Open title in Montreal this summer.

She will face either compatriot and in-form Leylah Fernandez, who is coming off victory last week in Osaka, or former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.

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