Tomas Machac eliminated Carlos Alcaraz. © ANSA / ALEX PLAVEVSKI
Jannik Sinner will not meet Carlos Alcaraz as expected after reaching the semi-finals at the Masters in Shanghai. Instead of a reunion with his long-term rival, the South Tyrolean has to deal with Alcaraz conqueror Tomas Machac. Here we introduce the young Czechs in more detail.
11 October 2024
From: dl
Tomas Machac is 23 years old and grew up 30 km west of Prague. The 1.83 man is considered a hard court specialist and is currently ranked 33rd in the world rankings. Machac is always good for surprises. He is the only player who defeated Novak Djokovic and Alcaraz this year. He also practices being left-handed while some players play – an unusual trait for a tennis professional.
“I felt like I was playing against a top 5 player,” said Alcaraz after his semi-final defeat on Friday. Machac won gold in the mixed doubles at the Olympic Games in Paris this summer – together with his ex-girlfriend Katerina Siniakova. His great role models are Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. The Czech is also a gifted table tennis player and a big basketball fan.
Jannik Sinner met Tomas Machac for the first time in Miami this year. © APA / AL BELLO
To date, Machac has only played against Sinner once – this year in the quarterfinals in Miami. At that time, the man from Sexten won clearly in two sets, although Machac was still number 60 in the world in March. Sinner is therefore warned about the semi-finals in Shanghai. SportNews will accompany the game again on Saturday (from 10.30 a.m.) with a live ticker.
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