Jannik Sinner tops Taylor Fritz to win US Open, his 2nd major

NEW YORK — World No. 1 Jannik Sinner arrived in New York more than two weeks ago facing a slew of questions and scrutiny over the news that he had been exonerated and avoided suspension after twice testing positive for a banned substance in March.

His expectations for the US Open were “low,” he said at the start.

But he leaves as a champion, having left little doubt about his status as the best hard-court player in 2024.

Sinner, a 23-year-old from Italy, won the US Open on Sunday behind a dominant 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 effort against American Taylor Fritz in front of a lively, celebrity-filled Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd that was largely against him. There were “U-S-A” chants and “Let’s go, Taylor” cheers throughout, but Sinner was unfazed. He didn’t drop a single point on his first serve over the final two sets of the match.

“He was too good,” the No. 12-seeded Fritz said during the on-court trophy presentation. He later called Sinner “the best player in the world right now.”

Having collected his first major title at the Australian Open in January, Sinner became the third man — and first since Guillermo Vilas in 1977 — to win his first two Grand Slam trophies in the same season. He’s also the second Italian player to win a singles title at the US Open, joining 2015 women’s champion Flavia Pennetta.

For Sinner, the victory marked an emotional end to a challenging few months. The world found out on Aug. 20 that he tested positive for a trace amount of clostebol, a banned anabolic steroid, twice in an eight-day span during the Indian Wells tournament, but was cleared because his use was ruled unintentional — his defense was that the steroid entered his system via a massage from a team member he later fired.

“[It] was difficult because the pre-tournament circumstances weren’t easy,” Sinner said Sunday. “I felt that I have grown match by match and that my confidence level went higher and higher … I’m happy how I handled this one. I’m just excited to have this trophy with me.”

Sinner has faced questions throughout the tournament about the doping case and what followed. Several players questioned the fairness of the ruling and pondered whether he had received special treatment due to his No. 1 ranking.

Sinner, for his part, called the situation a “mistake” and was adamant about his innocence and that he went through the “same process” as everyone else.