**HALLE, Germany—** Jannik Sinner couldn’t help but grin towards his team on Tuesday at the Terra Wortmann Open after securing the first break in a tough match against Tallon Griekspoor.
Sinner’s grin was justified as he had just clinched a crucial rally, marking a pivotal moment in his victorious debut as the ATP’s world No. 1.
In a tightly contested Halle match, Sinner overcame a disappointing first set to defeat Griekspoor, 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-2.
Griekspoor impressively came back from a 1-5 deficit in the tie-break, saved two set points, and took the first set on his third chance.
Sinner now holds a 34-3 record this season.
At 2-2 in the second set, there was a brief delay due to a net issue. Fans at OWL Arena sang John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” during the pause, fitting for the ATP 500 event’s pastoral setting.
Once play resumed, Sinner saved three break points on his serve to maintain his lead. In the next game, the Italian hustled to make a forehand pass winner and finished with a side-somersault to take a 4-2 lead.
“It started with a lucky return, I shanked it a little bit. He opened me on the forehand,” Sinner recounted to TENNIS.com. “I tried to let him play his normal shot and then somehow I went in the wrong direction. But I saw his ball touch the net and go high.
“So I had a small chance to get to that ball. I just somehow tried to play cross court because he was covering down the line. It was a crucial moment that went my way, and from that point, the momentum shifted.”
