What are the physical conditions with which Jannik Sinner will face the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati? The Italian was unable to defend the title he won last year at the Canadian Open and surrendered in the quarterfinals at the ATP Masters 1000 in Montreal. Andrey Rublev put an end to his journey, thus obtaining his second career success against the world number 1.
Jannik did not appear in his best conditions at the Omnium Banque National and, on more than one occasion, he touched his hip, showing some suffering. The hip, a few months ago, prevented Sinner from participating in the Internazionali BNL d'Italia and from arriving in the desired shape at Roland Garros.
But it was Sinner himself who wanted to reassure everyone about his physical condition, in the Media Day of the ATP Masters 1000 in Cincinnati
"I feel pretty good. Obviously I had almost a week without training before Montreal and then I played for two or three days in a row, more than usual. That could have had a potential impact on the hip. But I'm not worried or scared. The hip is fine, I can't wait to get back on the court here in Cincinnati. I think my season is very, very positive and I want to continue to build on that," he said.
Sinner spent the first ten weeks of his career at the top of the ATP rankings: "If you want to keep this position, I have to continue to improve. And if you want to improve, you have to improve more than the others. I think it's a balance between how much you work and how much quality you put into it. I usually struggle a bit here because of the conditions, but I'm looking forward to seeing how I'll perform this year. It's a big test for me. This tournament can give you a lot of confidence ahead of the US Open, the last Slam of the season. So it's a really important tournament for me. I'll think day by day."
After missing the 2024 Paris Olympics due to tonsillitis, Jannik returned to the court in Montreal. The world number 1 probably paid a high price for playing two matches at a time when he's not in the best possible physical condition. The rain that hit Quebec's largest city on August 9 forced some players to play two matches in one day. Sinner defeated Alejandro Tabilo in the round of 16, but was unable to match the result against Rublev.
The 22-year-old Italian will face the winner of Tallon Griekspoor vs. qualifier Alex Michelsen in the first round in Cincinnati, and on the media day he also spoke about his absence from the Paris Olympics.
"I felt I was playing well in Paris this year, at Roland Garros. Knowing that the Olympics were going to be played there and that I can play well on that court, I wanted to give myself the chance to win a medal. Sometimes you have to accept it. Of course it comes back to you now that you missed the event, but it's part of the sport. I have to be happy with what I have and not just look at the negatives. We all have doubts. I had doubts before I won a Slam, I didn't know if I would be able to win it or not. And then comes the moment when you win it. Afterwards, your mind knows that you can do it, but you have to keep working hard for the goal," he added.
Leaving Montreal. Results don’t always go your way. Some positives to take and I start again in Cincinnati next week. Cheers @jackdraper0 . That was good fun pic.twitter.com/B9qXEtJ0CQ
— Jannik Sinner (@janniksin) August 11, 2024
"We often forget about the season I'm having. I've won a lot of matches and lost very few, with today we're at 5 defeats since the beginning of the year. I don't see what the problem is: I know that I shouldn't look at these statistics, but so far my year has been very consistent. I've reached at least the quarterfinals in all the tournaments I've participated in," explained Sinner after the defeat in Montreal against Rublev.
Thanks not only to the triumph at the Australian Open, the 22-year-old Italian has already won 6410 points in this year's Race ranking. A result never repeated by an Italian in history, which has officially given the pass to the athlete trained by coaches Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill for the 2024 edition of the Nitto ATP Finals scheduled in Turin in November. Jannik's goal is to be ready for the important event of the US Open, before focusing on the season finale on indoor hard courts.
