Sports
Sinner dismisses health fears to reach semis
Defending champion Jannik Sinner dismissed concerns about his physical state to thrash home hope Alex de Minaur and reach the Australian Open semi-finals.
Sinner struggled with illness in his previous match but looked sharp in a 6-3 6-2 6-1 victory over eighth seed De Minaur.
Two days after being sick before playing Denmark’s Holger Rune and needing to see a doctor, Sinner said he felt “ready” when he woke up on Wednesday.
Sinner denied speculation he had pneumonia, saying blood tests after his fourth-round match were “all good”.
“I feel like the illness has gone away now. I was feeling much, much better this morning,” the world number one said.
“When you are young you recover very fast – so it’s a bit different.”
The 23-year-old Italian will face American Ben Shelton in the last four on Friday.
Shelton, 22, reached the Melbourne semi-finals for the first time with a battling 6-4 7-5 4-6 7-6 (7-4) against Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego.