Cincinnati, Aug 8: World No. 1 Jannik Sinner believes stepping away from the game after his Wimbledon triumph was the best decision he could have made. Now rested and recharged, the Italian is ready to defend his Cincinnati Open title as he returns to the court following nearly a month-long break.The 23-year-old endured an emotionally taxing early summer, losing a gruelling French Open final to Carlos Alcaraz before bouncing back to beat the Spaniard at Wimbledon and claim his fourth Grand Slam title. It was a high point in an otherwise turbulent season that included a brief suspension due to an inadvertent doping offence.
Following his All England Club success, Sinner chose recovery over competition. “The body and mind need to recover and need to understand what happened,” he told reporters in Ohio on Wednesday. “I’m very happy I took some time off, seeing my family and friends and very important people I have around. In the past, I made some mistakes sometimes, starting too early at times.”
With a first-round bye in Cincinnati, Sinner will kick off his title defence over the weekend. The Italian also explained that his break was a carefully considered decision made in consultation with his team. “When you win big titles, they’re very special moments and then you have to leave them,” he said.
The world number one drew attention during his Wednesday practice session with American Christopher Eubanks, where he wore a protective sleeve on his right elbow. Sinner clarified that the sleeve wasn’t due to injury but rather for added stability.
The elbow is good. Today was the first time that I put the sleeve on because I liked the feeling,” he said. “The impact with the ball is slightly more stable and I liked it at Wimbledon. I had to see how it is when it’s very hot and humid… but I really love the feeling of pure striking.”