The world No. 2 became the odds-on favorite when Alcaraz exited in the third round to Sebastian Korda, but Sinner has showed no signs of additional pressure in his run to the last eight, defeating No. 30 seed Corentin Moutet and American Alex Michelsen in straight sets to book a sixth career meeting with Tiafoe.
A former Top 10 player, Tiafoe scored his first win over Sinner back in 2021 on the indoor courts in Vienna. Though he had not taken a set in their two subsequent meetings, the 28-year-old won one of the most consequential matches of the tournament when he dethroned defending champion Jakub Mensik in the third round—toppling the No. 12 seed in a third-set tiebreaker.
Following that up with another three-setter against friendly rival Terence Atmane, Tiafoe was in for a significantly bigger challenge against Sinner to kick off play on Thursday. He found himself on the back foot early, losing serve in the first game of the match.
