It was a birthday with a difference for world No.1 Jannik Sinner on Saturday. The Italian celebrated turning 24 in style, beating qualifier Terence Atmane 7-6 6-2 to set up a clash with Carlos Alcaraz in the final of the Cincinnati Open.

Frenchman Terence Atmane made sure Jannik Sinner had a 24th birthday to remember, gifting the world number one a Pokemon card before going on to lose their semi-final meeting at the Cincinnati Open on Saturday.

Jannik Sinner celebrated his 24th birthday on the semi-final day in Cincinnati. The Italian faced Terence Atmane in the last four and earned a 7-6, 6-2 victory in an hour and 26 minutes for a place in the title clash.

Unless you’re a tennis die-hard, you probably didn’t know much about Terence Atmane before this week. The 23-year-old Frenchman is ranked as the World No. 136 and has played just 14 matches on the ATP Tour in the last calendar year.

Who knows if Jannik Sinner, as a child, loved fairy tales or was too caught up in his daydreams of a future as world number 1. Certainly, on his 24th birthday, the defending champion of

Jannik Sinner was subjected to an unusual chant from the Cincinnati Open crowd before his match against Terence Atmane. The young Italian was pitted against his French rival in the semi-finals, having won all of his previous matches without dropping a set.

Jannik Sinner scored three victories at the Cincinnati Masters for a place in the quarter-final. The defending champion passed Daniel Elahi Galan, Gabrial Diallo and Adrian Mannarino to remain on the title course.