With the big three withdrawing from the Miami Open, one would think Tsitsipas, Medvedev or Rublev, and Zverev would have taken advantage. Nope, not at all. They all fell like dominos to players well below their ranking. One can’t help to think that this is yet another missed opportunity for these guys. What will it take for this current generation to start winning big titles on a routine basis? In all honesty, it doesn’t even matter. The reason it doesn’t matter is because we are witnessing Jannik Sinner’s coming out party in real time. He’s arguably the best young talent on the ATP Tour.

Everyone has been touting Sinner’s ability for months now. Many of us expected him to break out this year. Did we think it would happen so soon, and at one of the most important Masters 1000 level event? I don’t think so. However, here we are, with Sinner one match win away from his first big title. Sinner, who is seeded 21, will be playing number 26 seed Hubert Hurkacz. Let’s not discount Hurkacz though, who at 24 years of age beat Shapovalov (6), Raonic (12), Tsitsipas (2), and Rublev (4) on his way to the final. That is an incredibly impressive feat. Hurkacz has shown potential in the past, however nothing like this. Beating this many top 20 players in one tournament is very unusual. One would think Sinner, who is ranked way below all those guys would pose a lesser threat. That’s not the case.

Although not as tough a draw as Hurkacz, Sinner is battle tested and had to contend with Kachankov (14), Bublick (32), and Bautista Agut (7) on his way to the final. His win against Bautista Agut was the most impressive of all. The Spaniard was playing some solid tennis, making Medvedev (1) look ordinary in the quarters.

So, who’s got the edge?

Like the women’s final, this one is also very difficult to predict. If we look at who Hurkacz beat on his way to the final, it would be reasonable to think he has the edge by a country mile. However, talented youngsters tend to break through in situations such as these. This one will be close, but I can’t help to think that Sinner’s time has come. Sinner gets the nod on this matchup