When Jannik Sinner plays in Madrid: where to watch him on TV and his record with Arthur Fils
Jannik Sinner wants to write history again: the South Tyrolean champion on Friday goes in the hunt for a spot in the Madrid Masters 1000 final, the last one he lacks in his already illustrious career. The Azzurro, who wants to be the first player to win five consecutive Masters 1000s, beat Bonzi in the opener, then Moller, Norrie and rising star Jodar in the later rounds.
The obstacle in front of him is respectable: Arthur Fils since his return from injury looks like a different player, much more confident. The French tennis player is so far undefeated on clay, and has just won the ATP 500 tournament in Barcelona, giving clear signs that on this surface he could be fearsome even for Sinner. He and the Azzurro have faced each other only once before, in 2023 in Montpellier: the San Candido champion won in two sets.
The match is scheduled for Friday, May 1, at Manolo Santana Stadium, no earlier than 4 p.m. It will be the first semifinal of the men’s singles draw, featuring Zverev versus Blockx on the other side. The match will be broadcast by Sky Sports and streamed on SkyGo, NOW Tv and Tennis Tv platforms.
Fils did not hide his ambitions on the eve of the challenge, indeed he sent a clear message to his opponent. “My average level is very high right now. I’m not happy when someone kicks my butt, I think about him a lot. When I face that person again, I try to be the best I can be and take my revenge,” said the Frenchman. The 21-year-old added, “He has a lot of confidence, but so do I. I hope it will be a good battle. Frankly, I think it will be fun! It will be a very high intensity match.” Against Lehecka in the quarterfinal, Fils did not even concede a break point in the entire match, dismissing the Czech with a clear 6-3 6-4 in one hour and fifteen minutes.
On the Sinner front, the real unknown may not be so much the opponent’s value as the management of physical energy. The South Tyrolean openly admitted to feeling the fatigue of a busy season: “I’m playing a lot, in the last two months I’ve had very few rest days and I’m starting to feel the fatigue. But it’s also true that I’m feeling good and trying to push myself beyond the limits, followed by a great staff that knows how to manage and stimulate me,” he told a press conference after the victory over Jodar. With 26 consecutive wins in Masters 1000 tournaments and just two total losses since the beginning of the year, the world No. 1 still has the Internazionali d’Italia and Roland Garros ahead of him-a busy schedule that makes athletic management a far from secondary variable.
