Sinner stays in his limits to outplay Alcaraz and reach China Open final

World number two Carlos Alcaraz slumped out of the China Open on Tuesday, collapsing in the second set to hand Italy's Jannik Sinner a place in the men's final against Daniil Medvedev in Beijing.

Both players traded several breaks of serve in a breathless first set that tipped Sinner's way when he cracked a blistering return off the Spaniard's second serve to take the all-important tie-break.

But Alcaraz -- the tournament favourite in Novak Djokovic's absence -- then fell apart, gifting Sinner three service games before crowning an error-laden second set with a tame backhand into the net to give the world number seven a 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 victory.

The 22-year-old Italian said his performance was at the "very top" of those he had produced in big matches.

"I would say every match against him is very tough. We always show great respect, we both play great," Sinner said ."When we play against each other, we try to stay on our limits."

Sinner and Medvedev will go toe-to-toe for the trophy on Wednesday.

Earlier, Medvedev hailed his "perfect" serve as he eased into the men's final with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Alexander Zverev.

Scare for Sabalenka

The top-ranked women's player Aryna Sabalenka said her performances in "key moments" were crucial to surviving a major scare in the second round, after she defeated unseeded Katie Boulter 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) in Beijing.

Fourth-ranked Jessica Pegula bounced back from a set down to beat Russia's Anna Blinkova 6-7 (2/7), 6-2, 6-1.

Sabalenka saved seven break points at 5-5 and then forced the stubborn Briton, ranked 56th in the world, into a rare backhand error to clinch the opening set.

The Belarusian notched another must-win break in the second set to again draw level at 5-5 before triumphing in a tie-break by slamming down an unreturned serve.

She will battle Italy's Jasmine Paolini in the next round for a place in the quarter-finals.

"I think what made the difference was that in the key moments I played a little bit better than her," Sabalenka said at a post-match news conference.

"I think it was all about those last games in each set. She had the opportunity and I'm super glad that I didn't give her those sets easily."

"I kept fighting, kept trying, and that's what made the difference," she said.

- Gauff hails 'mental victory' -

US Open champion Coco Gauff also had to dig deep to get the better of Croatia's Petra Martic in a rollercoaster tie that lasted three hours.

Martic was serving for the match against Gauff but the world number three fought back to take the game and went on to dominate the ensuing tie-break, winning 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (7/2).

"Today was a mental victory. I was happy I was able to get through it," said Gauff, who will face Russia's Veronika Kudermetova in her next match.

"I was just telling myself to keep suffering, it will be over in a couple of seconds," the 19-year-old said.

"I knew I could outlast her. I just had to be consistent, but also aggressive."

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World number two Iga Swiatek shook off a rain delay to glide past France's Varvara Gracheva 6-4, 6-1 to set up a date with fellow Pole Magda Linette.

"I didn't want to rush. I just wanted to be patient and really consistent with my tactics. I'm happy that I did that," Swiatek said.

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