Can Jannik Sinner lose to Alex Michelsen?

08/14/2024 07:00 AM

Jannik Sinner stopped in the quarterfinals at the Montreal Masters 1000, where he was the big favorite for the victory due to the absences of Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic. The world’s number 1 - not yet at the top of his game - was beaten in three sets by a great Andrey Rublev.

Jannik’s level has fallen in the last two months, also due to some injuries. The 2024 Australian Open champion had a hip injury before the French Open and a stomach bug affected him during his match against Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals at the Wimbledon Championships.

The Italian also had to give up the Paris Olympics because of a tonsillitis. Sinner’s decision not to go to Paris has sparked much controversy in his country, as Jannik also missed the Tokyo Olympics three years ago.

Sinner will try to get a great result in Cincinnati this week. The world’s number 1 - who was eliminated by Dusan Lajovic in round two last year - will be able to play without too much pressure. The Cincinnati tournament will be a great test for him before the US Open 2024, which will take place in Flushing Meadows at the end of August. The Italian will have to earn points over Djokovic and Alcaraz in New York, as he will have a lot of points to defend in the autumn.

Jannik Sinner will face young American Alex Michelsen today in Cincinnati. The young American talent defeated Tallon Griekspoor yesterday and he can go on the court without having anything to lose. The world’s number 1 will have to try to play as many matches as possible in Cincinnati to get to the top of his form at the US Open, which is his main goal.

"I feel pretty good. Obviously, I spent almost a week without training before the tournament and then, after playing two or three consecutive days, a bit more than usual. That could have had a potential impact on the hip, but I'm not afraid. I feel good with the hip and I'm eager to play again on the courts here," said Sinner before the start of the tournament.

He continued: "To get to this point, you have to be physically fit. The overall form has to be perfect throughout the year to reach this position because it's the result of playing consistently throughout the year. Here, I normally struggle a bit to play due to the conditions, but I'm looking forward to seeing my reaction this year; it's a big test for me. I think this tournament can give you a lot of confidence for the US Open, which is the last Grand Slam we have this year. In my opinion, this is a very important tournament."

The Italian ace spoke again of the Olympics: "The Olympics were my main goal for the season because I missed the last ones. This year I felt that, as I was playing well at Roland Garros, I could play well on that court, trying to give myself a chance to win a medal. But sometimes you have to accept it. Maybe sometimes you feel a bit more stressed and your immune system weakens a bit. It's all part of the sport, and I also have to be happy with what I have, not always looking at the negative side. I think my season is going very positively, and we keep building on that."

Sinner’s physical condition worries fans. The Italian wants to finish the year at the top of the ATP ranking, but he will have to be especially careful about Carlos Alcaraz. The Spaniard - who has won the French Open and Wimbledon Championships in the last two months - has said he will try to be number 1 again.

“At the end of the year, if you end the race No 1, in the rankings [it is] quite similar, so you’re going to end the No 1. So I’m really focused on that” – Carlitos said. “I’m focused on going to every tournament, thinking about playing great tennis, doing a good result just to get better in the race. This year, ending the year as No 1 is one of my main goals right now. So I’m looking forward to doing it and let’s see.

I’m fighting for being No 1 in the race, that’s something that I really want to to do as soon as possible, if I could do it in the future. This one is a really important tournament, really good tournament for me. So I’m going to try to play good tennis, try to play same level as I was playing, and let’s see.”