In a marathon match that lasted over two-and-a-half hours, the 23-year-olds were inseparable for the most part. But the Greek eventually blinked in the seventh game of the final set to concede the only break of the match. Opelka then held firm in his next two service games to claim the first top-five win of his career.

The American will face Daniil Medvedev in his maiden Masters 1000 final, while Tsitsipas will head to Cincinnati.

During his post-match press conference, Stefanos Tsitsipas, who cut a frustrated figure throughout the match against Opelka, was asked whether he found the conditions in Toronto tough to tackle. The Greek replied in the negative, saying “nothing was too difficult to handle.”

Tsitsipas also said he was not too disappointed with the result and that “there is hope for next time.”

Tsitsipas failed to consistently make inroads into Opelka’s service games and earned just one breakpoint in the match, which he failed to convert. When asked about his struggles against big servers, the Greek said the return of serve is an area he has been constantly striving to improve.

The match between Tsitsipas and Opelka was dominated by serve and did not feature too many long baseline rallies. Tsitsipas admitted that he could not get into any sort of rhythm, which made it hard for him to impose his style of tennis.

“My one-handed backhand has saved me and helped me get important wins in my career”- Stefanos Tsitsipas

Tsitsipas is one of the few top players who uses a single-handed backhand. The Greek likes to hit his backhand with a lot of topspin and does not often slice the ball to disrupt the opponent’s rhythm. Slices tend to stay low, making it hard for taller players like Opelka to take a big swing at the ball.

When asked if he would use the slice more frequently against big-servers going forward, Tsitsipas said it was important to find a balance between slice and topspin.

The Greek went on to add that his topspin backhand was one of the reasons for his remarkable success and that slicing had never won him a big match.

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