Jannik Sinner has shrugged off an injury concern to annihilate Ben Shelton in their Australian Open semi-final and put himself on a path to a second successive title.
The world No.1 had moments where he limped and seemed to suffer from a spasm at one stage, but ended up winning in straight sets 7-6 (7-2), 6-2, 6-2.
Shelton didn't make it easy for him though, having two set points of his own in the first.
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The American also blew numerous break points, only converted two out of seven.
Jannik Sinner acknowledges the crowd after his victory. Â Getty
In contrast, Sinner had a 46 per cent break points won record, with six from 13.
Shelton also had 55 unforced errors across the three sets.
The first set started with Shelton breaking Sinner's serve and going up 2-0. Sinner brought it back to 3-3 at one stage but was notably not at his best, directing frustration towards his coaching box and breathing heavily after tough rallies.
"You don't often see Jannik Sinner look like this in any time of the match, especially 30 minutes into it but they've had some physical points … and then eventually showing some real disdain, some real displeasure with his team which you don't often see," Jim Courier said on Nine.
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Eventually Sinner defied set points to force a tiebreak and dominated from there.
The defending Australian Open champion didn't have any notable issues during his strong second set but showed signs of fatigue in the third.
He started limping when Shelton had two break points at 2-1, although he defended those points and went on to win the game.
"He pulled up with a big limp, I've got a feeling he might be cramping," Todd Woodbridge said on Nine.
"He's certainly dealing with something at the moment," Lleyton Hewitt added.
In the next game, the Italian attempted a massive jumping backhand before he immediately grimaced and pulled up stiff.
"He's in big trouble," Courier said on Nine.
"He definitely pulls up in a spasm there."
Sinner was then given a rub down from the physio along with having hydrolytes, pickle juice and gel run out for him.
Despite the issues, Sinner didn't drop another game and sealed his showdown with world No.2 Alexander Zverev on Sunday.
Post-match, Sinner put his issues simply down to cramp.
"Just a lot of tensions today, slight cramps, but also he was suffering today in his legs," he told Courier.
"… these matches can go very long, three sets for two and a half hours is quite a time."