Jannik Sinner's US Open thrown into doubt following Cincinnati Masters withdrawal

Sinner was spotted visiting a medical facility in Italy over the last week, with reports suggesting he flew his own private doctor into the medical discussion over fears that a knee problem may derail his hopes of being fully fit for the US Open.

The news that Sinner would miss the final warm-up tournament before the final Grand Slam of 2026 was confirmed on Sunday, with an announcement from Cincinnati Open chiefs.

"Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Open due to a right knee injury," read their statement. "Wishing all the best to our 2024 champion and can't wait to see you again next year."

This was the first official confirmation that Sinner has a knee problem and he backed up the announcement with a statement of his own.

"After consulting with my doctors and my team, I have to announce that I need to withdraw from the Masters 1000 tournament in Cincinnati," Sinner said.

"My right knee has been bothering me and even though we have been working hard with my medical team, I have to accept that I'm not ready to compete yet.

"I'm very disappointed not to be able to play in Cincinnati and wish Bob and his whole team a great and successful event. I can't wait to be back next year and I'm now focusing on getting ready for the US Open."

It's now common practice for tennis players to downplay their injury in public and while Sinner's comments may suggest his knee problem is not a major concern, we don't know how serious this problem is for the world No 1.

His great rival Carlos Alcaraz suggested he has a 'problem' with his wrist after he was forced to pull out of the Barcelona Open back in April, but that has proved to be a much more serious problem as he has not hit a ball in competitive tennis since then.

While there is no suggestion Sinner is facing a similarly lengthy lay-off at this stage, there is no doubt that his decision to pull out of the Cincinnati Masters is a blow to his hopes of fine-tuning his game on hard courts ahead of the final major of the year.

Alcaraz has already abandoned plans to start his comeback from injury in Cincinatti and now the race is on for the two top players in men's tennis to be fit to play at the US Open.

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