Jannik Sinner wins Halle, becoming the eighth player to win his first event as ATP No. 1.
The 22-year-old, who ascended to No. 1 after Roland Garros, secured his first grass-court title by defeating Hubert Hurkacz in the Halle final. This marks Sinner’s fourth ATP title of the year and his first on grass, as he triumphed over Hurkacz in the ATP 500-level event with a score of 7-6 (8), 7-6 (2).
Sinner joins an elite group as the eighth player in ATP history to win his debut event as No. 1.
Men to Win First Event as ATP No. 1 (since 1973):
- Jimmy Connors (1974 Indianapolis)
- Bjorn Borg (1979 Monte Carlo)
- Mats Wilander (1988 Palermo)
- Stefan Edberg (1990 Long Island)
- Pete Sampras (1993 Hong Kong)
- Novak Djokovic (2011 Canada)
- Andy Murray (2016 ATP Finals)
- Jannik Sinner (2024 Halle)
Moreover, Sinner is the youngest player to achieve this since Sampras in 1993, and the third-youngest overall, after Sampras and Connors, who were both 21.
Youngest Men to Win First Event as ATP No. 1 (since 1973):
- Pete Sampras [21 years, 8 months]
- Jimmy Connors [21 years, 11 months]
- Jannik Sinner [22 years, 10 months]
- Bjorn Borg [22 years, 10 months]
- Mats Wilander [24 years, 1 month]
- Novak Djokovic [24 years, 2 months]
- Stefan Edberg [24 years, 7 months]
- Andy Murray [29 years, 6 months]
Sinner is just two days younger than Borg was when he won his first tournament as No. 1—22 years, 10 months, and 7 days compared to 22 years, 10 months, and 9 days.
Sinner has now won ATP titles on all three surfaces: hard, clay, and grass.
The all-Top 10 final at the ATP 500 event saw no breaks of serve, though Sinner faced some challenging moments. He saved a break point in the fourth game and a set point at 7-6 in the first set tie-break. Ultimately, Sinner proved too strong in the crucial moments of both sets, defeating Hurkacz for the third time in five encounters and breaking their 2-2 head-to-head tie.
Sinner’s career now includes ATP titles on hard, clay, and grass. Of his 14 career titles, 12 have been on hard courts, including his biggest title at the Australian Open this year. He has one title on clay from Umag in 2022 and now one on grass from Halle.
