Follow us on Google Discover Jannik Sinner will be back in action at the Six Kings Slam after his Shanghai Masters withdrawal.
Sinner asked questions of the ATP Tour after pulling out of his match with Tallon Griekspoor with severe cramps in his legs.
Sinner is now facing a losing battle to reclaim his world number one spot this year, and it’s all about momentum, ready for his Australian Open defence.
This week, Sinner will compete for absurd prize money at the Six Kings Slam and could meet his rival Carlos Alcaraz in the final if things go according to plan.
Changes will be made by Sinner after his latest fitness concern, and now he’s been told that perhaps he’s fighting a losing battle with one aspect of his game.
Photo by Hu Chengwei/Getty ImagesPaolo Bertolucci says Sinner lacks something Djokovic and Alcaraz have
Bertolucci is a former Italian tennis player who won six career titles and reached a career-high world ranking of number 12 back in August 1973.
He reached the quarterfinal of the French Open back in 1973, and these days he lends his thoughts to the media in Italy regarding the game’s big matters.
He’s now claimed in an interview that Sinner simply doesn’t have the same physical capacities as Djokovic or Alcaraz and there’s probably little chance that he ever will have.
He told Sky Sports Italia: “It’s a shame because Sinner had a great chance in this tournament. The boy is a bit frail. Once he had cramps, once his stomach, once his elbow, and then the blisters and his hip.
“In short, it’s starting to feel like a lot of things. He doesn’t have the same physical consistency as Djokovic or Alcaraz; this seems obvious to me by now. It’s not surprising. But we shouldn’t worry too much either. I repeat, in this tragedy, we have the world number two.
“All this in a month and a half. I wonder, is this tour de force really necessary? Was there really a need to go to Beijing? I know the answer: the points, the ranking, the number one… And who cares about all this? You don’t include it?
“It’s true that Sinner had a shortened season due to the stupid doping ban, but the underlying issue doesn’t change.
Six Kings Slam is the perfect next tournament for Jannik Sinner
The Italian player needs to ensure that he’s in some sort of form ahead of the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals to finish the year, and that might make the Six Kings Slam important.
Only eight different players have managed to beat Sinner since late 2023, and he will want to win his matches at the Six Kings Slam and claim a huge bounty of money.
Having the same physical consistency as Djokovic and Alcaraz isn’t necessarily a huge problem, especially considering he’s still managed to win four of the last eight Grand Slam titles.
This exhibition, taking place in Saudi Arabia, might be frowned upon by tennis purists, but right now, it’s the perfect event for Sinner to try out his body and ensure he’s in some sort of form for the remainder of the year.