World number one Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Open due to a right knee injury, tournament organizers announced on Sunday, leaving the top-ranked Italian racing against time less than a month before the US Open begins on August 30, according to reports from Ouest-France and Le Parisien.
“My right knee hurts and, even though we have worked hard with my medical team, I must accept that I am not yet ready for competition,” Sinner said in an official statement published by Ouest-France. The 22-year-old hasn’t played a competitive match since claiming his second Wimbledon title on July 12, where he defeated Alexander Zverev in the final.
Tournament organizers confirmed that Sinner’s withdrawal leaves the hard-court Masters 1000 event—scheduled for August 13 to 23—without its top seed. “I am looking forward to returning next year and am now focusing on my preparation for the US Open,” Sinner added, as reported by Le Parisien, though neither tournament officials nor the player’s camp provided specific details regarding the exact nature or severity of the knee issue.
The latest setback compounds a physically turbulent summer for the world’s top-ranked player. Sinner suffered a severe physical collapse under extreme heat during his second-round exit at Roland-Garros in late May, before rebounding to capture the grass-court crown at the All England Club. Following his Wimbledon triumph, Sinner also withdrew from the National Bank Open in Montreal, citing a need to prioritize his overall health.
US Open Preparations Overshadowed by Elite Fitness Concerns
Jannik Sinner’s absence in Cincinnati directly mirrors the ongoing fitness battles of his chief rival, Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, who announced his own tournament withdrawal on August 5 due to an ongoing right wrist injury that has sidelined him since April, according to Ouest-France. The simultaneous health struggles of tennis’s premier young superstars inject intense uncertainty into the final weeks leading into the year’s final Grand Slam event in New York.
At Flushing Meadows last year, Sinner and Alcaraz squared off in a marquee title match that ended with Alcaraz lifting the trophy, notes Le Parisien. Sinner’s subsequent absence from the Ohio tune-up event—where he was forced to withdraw before the final last year against Alcaraz—means the Italian will enter New York without hard-court match practice since his summer layoff.
Novak Djokovic Enters Cincinnati Field as Top Contenders Reset
While the top of the men’s game faces mounting injury concerns, 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic has confirmed his participation in the Cincinnati draw, according to Ouest-France. The Serbian star has similarly managed various physical ailments over recent months.
In the absence of both Sinner and Alcaraz, world number three Alexander Zverev steps into the tournament as the primary men’s seed, offering the rest of the ATP Tour a wide-open path to capture a prestigious Masters 1000 title before the tour shifts focus entirely to the United States Open at the end of August.
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