PARIS: Jannik Sinner’s bid to reclaim the No. 1 ranking got off to a good start Wednesday with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Zizou Bergs in the second round of the Paris Masters, which the Italian needs to win to knock Carlos Alcaraz off the top spot.
Sinner’s 65-week reign as No. 1 ended in September when Alcaraz won the US Open final against him for his sixth major title and the top spot. But Alcaraz lost in Paris on Tuesday in the second round to unseeded Cameron Norrie, opening the door for Sinner in their seesaw rivalry.
Sinner had Bergs under constant pressure, forging 11 break-point chances and converting three, while not conceding a break point of his own. The 24-year-old Italian clinched victory on his first match point and plays unseeded Francisco Cerundolo in the third round.
Defending champion Alexander Zverev joined Sinner in round three by rallying from 3-1 down in the final set to beat Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-7 (5), 6-1, 7-5.
The third-seeded German made a telling difference on his second serve, winning 78 percent of points compared to 42 percent for his opponent, who dropped his serve four times. Zverev next plays 15th-seeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Elsewhere, ninth-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada rallied from a break down in the second set and 3-0 down in the third set tiebreaker in a 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4) win over Frenchman Alexandre Muller.
Auger-Aliassime’s erratic performance combined 50 winners and 55 unforced errors as he he maintained his chances of reaching the season-ending, eight-player ATP Finals in Turin, Italy. He next faces unseeded Daniel Altmaier, who beat eighth-seeded Casper Ruud 6-3, 7-5 to end the Norwegian’s chances of reaching Turin.
No. 11 Daniil Medvedev advanced with a walkover after Grigor Dimitrov — the 2023 tournament runner-up — pulled out of their match with a shoulder injury.
Family affair
Valentin Vacherot came out on top again in the battle of the cousins as he beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-7 (9), 6-3, 6-4.
“It was very physical. Mentally, it was hard, as well,” Vacherot said. “We were very tense, I think the crowd could see it.”
A little more than two weeks ago, Vacherot won the Shanghai Masters final against Rinderknech, making a run from qualifying in China to win his first career tournament.
The 40th-ranked Vacherot, who is from Monaco, plays Norrie next.