A former Italian tennis star has admitted he is “worried” about Jannik Sinner as he called for the world No 1’s team to shed light on his injury.
Sinner has not played since he defeated Alexander Zverev in four sets in the Wimbledon championship match on 12 July.
The five-time Grand Slam winner, who is dealing with a right knee injury, missed the Masters 1000 tournaments in Montreal and Cincinnati before withdrawing from the US Open.
Last week, Sinner pulled out of the China Open — an ATP 500 event in Beijing which began today.
“I want to send the warmest greetings to the Chinese fans,” Sinner said in a video on X/Twitter. “I’m very sorry to announce that I won’t be able to play in Beijing this year. My knee is not where I would like it to be and I’m not ready to compete yet.
“I will do everything possible to be there on court as soon as I can. What I miss the most is, of course, the tournament, the fans and the atmosphere.
“I’ve had great times there in the past, winning the title also last year. I’m very disappointed that I cannot defend it this year.”
More Tennis News
Want more from Tennis365? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for tennis coverage you can trust.
It is unclear when Sinner will return to action, and his participation at the upcoming Shanghai Masters looks far from certain.
In an interview with Tuttosport, former world No 7 Corrado Barazzutti expressed concern as he discussed Sinner’s absence.
“Let’s say I’m worried, yes, even though I don’t have a lot of information,” said Barazzutti.
“There’s talk of extra-articular tendon inflammation. The problem is that we haven’t seen him on court for almost three months, and when a player like him has been absent for that long, it’s normal for doubts to arise.
“What I don’t understand is why they can’t provide a medical report and simply say: this is the problem, he’ll be back in three months, in four months.
“I understand that privacy is a concern, but since we’re talking about the world No 1, a slightly clearer statement would at least give everyone an idea. Otherwise, it’s just fuelling speculation.”
The two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist added: “It’s true, there’s no doubt that players are under a lot of pressure.
“But it’s also true that they train precisely to withstand them, and they should be treated and trained preventively: if good prevention work is done, in my opinion the risk of physical injuries decreases.”
READ NEXT: ‘He’s been hacked’ – Jannik Sinner fans stunned by Nick Kyrgios U-turn after years of tension
