Jannik Sinner defeated Frances Tiafoe in the final of the Cincinnati Masters on Monday, with the American then quickly speaking out.

Tiafoe congratulated Sinner after his title game defeat (Image: Getty Images)

Italian tennis star Jannik Sinner took sweet revenge against American opponent Francis Tiafoe at the Cincinnati Masters on Monday, gliding to a straight-sets triumph as he continues his reign as world No. 1 in Ohio.

Although their rivalry had previously spilled into the public eye following a clash a few years back, Tiafoe graciously offered congratulations to Sinner post-match, hinting at a buried hatchet between the two athletes. “I guess I got to congratulate Jannik man. Congrats for everything you’ve been doing…” expressed a respectful Tiafoe after his recent defeat, adding, “Getting to No. 1 in the world. And pretty much never losing ever. Keep going.. all the best in New York. If we play, don’t beat me in New York.”

Their last notable encounter was at the Vienna Open semifinals in 2021, where Sinner seemed all set for a smooth victory at one stage. As Sinner was poised to serve at 6-3, 5-3, Tiafoe’s sudden outburst rattled him, leading to an astonishing comeback win for the American.

Tiafoe completed a stunning comeback against Sinner in 2021 (Image: Getty Images)

Post-match, Sinner had harsh words about Tiafoe’s actions, categorically labelling them as “disrespect”.

“In my opinion, today Tiafoe went too far, has done too much,” Sinner declared. “It is one thing when the player tries to put on a show to put on a bit of a show, but it is quite another when you start to disrespect.”

The Italian ace has ascended to world No. 1, a prestigious position he secured going into Cincinnati, reinforced by two impressive semi-final performances at Grand Slam tournaments this year.

Despite an eventual smooth victory in the final, Sinner’s journey to triumph was marked by intense matches, having to overcome both world No. 6 Andrey Rublev and No.4 Alexander Zverev in gripping three-set encounters during the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively.

“It was a very difficult week, tough week. I’m very happy about today’s match,” shared Sinner during his post-match discussion. “It was very tough mentally.

“I had such an amazing run here, and I tried to do my best today. We both were quite tired from yesterday. We both felt a lot of tension, but I’m very glad about [the] level I played today, especially in the important moments.”

Tiafoe, on the other hand, came to the Queen City without a rank, following a dip from his peak at No. 10 just the previous yeara reflection of his below-par run of late.

However, in his first quarterfinals since last year’s Indian Wells Open, Tiafoe notched a commendable win over No. 5 Hubert Hurkacz and No.15 Holger Rune before being narrowly outplayed by Sinner.

“It’s been a tough year man, it’s been a tough year,” expressed Tiafoe. “Yeah, pretty much since the end of my US Open (2023) run, what I haven’t won 4 matches in a row since then so… yeah, it’s been tough but I’m in a different place right now in my life. Happy to have everything that comes my way good, bad, different, kinda gets rolled with the punches.”