Rome, May 17 -- World number one Jannik Sinner set up a blockbuster Italian Open final against Carlos Alcaraz by fighting back to beat American Tommy Paul.
Playing on home clay in his first tournament since a three-month doping ban, Sinner overcame an off-key start before overcoming the 11th seed 1-6 6-0 6-3 on Friday.
In front of a packed and partisan centre court in Rome, the 23-year-old stretched his unbeaten run to 26 matches and moved one win away from being the first Italian men's singles winner at the tournament since Adriano Panatta in 1976.
In a topsy-turvy match, Paul raced to a 5-0 lead en route to a stunning first-set success, during which Sinner made 13 unforced errors and just two winners.
But the match flipped from the st...