The young American said he felt his level was close to that of the Italian champion, on the sidelines of the Melbourne challenge

The win sets up a showdown with Alexander Zverev of Germany in Sunday’s final. Earlier Friday, Zverev won the first set of his semifinal when Novak Djokovic missed a putaway volley in a tiebreak. Djokovic retired on the spot, unable to overcome the muscle tear he suffered in his quarterfinal win over Carlos Alcaraz Tuesday night.

Jannik Sinner fought through an attack of cramp to subdue his explosive young challenger Ben Shelton in three sets and keep his title defence on the road.