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Halle: Jannik Sinner Wins First Title as World Number One

Written by Edda Bevilacqua

Jannik Sinner of Italy defeated Hubert Hurkacz of Poland 7-6, 7-6 in Halle, Germany and enters Wimbledon as the top-seeded player. He has lost just three matches this year, two to Carlos Alcaraz (Indian Wells and the French Open) and one to Stefanos Tsitsipas (Monte Carlo). He made the semifinals of Wimbledon, won by Carlos Alcaraz, in 2023. 

Jannik Sinner said of his victory in Halle, “I’m more confident. Obviously, the grass might be a bit different from here and Wimbledon. But I have one week now to prepare, so hopefully it’s going to be a good tournament.”

Queen’s Club, London: Tommy Paul Becomes Highest Ranked American Player 

At Queen’s Club in London, American Tommy Paul triumphed over Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti 6-1, 7-6. With his victory, Tommy Paul becomes the number one ranked American player and improves his ranking to twelfth in the world. He became the first American to triumph at Queen’s Club since Sam Querrey in 2010.

Berlin: Jessica Pegula Defeats Anna Kalinskaya

Jessica Pegula completed a double victory for the Americans this week, defeated Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya 6-7, 6-4, 7-6 to take the title in Berlin. She defeated fellow American Coco Gauff in a rain-delayed semifinal to advance to the final against Kalinskaya. After losing the first set, Pegula came back to win the next two. She won her fifth title overall and her first on grass. She reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2023.

Birmingham: Yuliya Putintseva Wins Title Over Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic

Yuliya Putintseva of Kazakhstan defeated Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic 6-1, 7-6 to take her first grass court title. She won titles on clay in Nurnberg in 2019 and Budapest in 2021. She said of her victory, “I don’t know what I’m feeling because I wasn’t expecting this at all. It’s great and it’s confusing because I’ve always been good on clay, but now, I’m good on grass. I’ll take that! It’s great!”

Tomljanovic made a comeback to competition after five years. Despite still waiting to win a title, she was happy to come back after missing most of 2023 following knee surgery.