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Italian explains that he is feeling 'quite good' entering Cincinnati
August 12, 2024
Jannik Sinner is the top seed in Cincinnati for the first time.
Mike Lawrence/ATP Tour
Jannik Sinner is the top seed in Cincinnati for the first time.
By Andrew Eichenholz
Jannik Sinner struggled physically during his quarter-final loss in Montreal. But on Monday, the Italian quelled any fears fans had during his press conference ahead of the Cincinnati Open, where he is the top seed.

“I feel quite good. Obviously I made nearly one week without practising before and then after playing for two, three days in a row, a bit more than usual, [that] could [have had] a potential impact to the hip,” Sinner said. “But I'm not afraid. I feel good with the hip, and I'm just looking forward to go back on court here.”

Sinner was the standout performer of the first half of the season, winning his first major title at the Australian Open before climbing to No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time in June. One of the Italian’s main goals for the season was succeeding at the Paris Olympics, which he was unable to play in after being diagnosed with tonsillitis.

“This year I felt like because I was playing well, also in Paris, in Roland Garros, and knowing that Olympics are there that I can play good on that court or quite well, trying to give myself a chance for medals,” Sinner said. “But sometimes you have to accept it. Obviously it goes also in your mind after now that you missed this because you wanted to prepare it. But it's all part of the sport, and I also have to be happy with what I have, not always looking on the negatives.

“I believe that my season is going in a very, very positive way, and we just keep building on that.”

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It has been a game-changing year for the 22-year-old. At the end of 2022, he advanced to the championship match of the Nitto ATP Finals and earned multiple wins against Novak Djokovic. But in 2024 he proved he can consistently beat the best players in the world for the biggest titles.

“We all have doubts. Sometimes, even before I won a Grand Slam, I had some doubts if I can win a Grand Slam or not. And then you reach the point where you win it,” Sinner said. “After, in your mind you know that you can do it, but you still have to work a lot for that.”

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Sinner has already held World No. 1 for more than 10 weeks. He is keen to continue improving to try to stay at the top of the sport.

“If you just want to hold the position, you have to improve. And if you want to get better, you have to improve more than the others,” Sinner said. “I think it's a good balance of how much work you do and how much quality you can put in the work.”

The winner of four titles this season has not historically excelled in Cincinnati, where he has tallied a 3-3 record. But the top seed will try to turn that around over the coming week.

“Here usually I struggle a little bit to play because of the conditions, but I'm looking forward to see my reaction this year, because it's a great test for me,” Sinner said. “I believe that this tournament can give you a lot of confidence then for the US Open, which is the last Grand Slam we have throughout the year. So in my mind, this is a very important tournament.

“We go day by day. Today is my first practice day. Let's see how it feels… I have a couple of days to prepare and hopefully show some good tennis.”

Italian improves to 25-2 on hard courts this year
August 14, 2024
Highlights: Sinner fends off Michelsen in Cincinnati 2024
Top seed Jannik Sinner defeats Alex Michelsen in Cincinnati to advance to the last 16. Watch live & on demand at TennisTV.com.

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Mike Lawrence/ATP Tour
Jannik Sinner opens his Cincinnati campaign with a straight-sets win over Alex Michelsen.
By ATP Staff
Jannik Sinner bounced back from a hip-injury scare and a quarter-final exit in Montreal with a battling opening win Wednesday at the Cincinnati Open. The Italian saved all eight break points against him in a 6-4, 7-5 victory against #NextGenATP American Alex Michelsen on centre court.

Sinner improved to 25-2 on hard courts this season and will next meet Sebastian Baez or Jordan Thompson for a place in the quarter-finals. Sinner has reached that stage at all five previous ATP Masters 1000s he has played this season, but he has never advanced to the quarters in Cincinnati.

"It was a tough match. He played already some matches but for me it was the first match here, so I tried to feel the conditions a but more," he said post-match. "I'm very happy to be in the next round. For me this is a place where I used to struggle a lot in the past years, so let's see what I can do this time.

"I'm trying to stay in a positive mindset, positive moment, and I think that today also brought me the win."


The No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings saved three break points in the opening set and five in the second, according to Infosys ATP Stats. He broke in his first and last return game of the match and wrapped up the win with an emphatic service hold.

In the pair's first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, the 19-year-old Michelsen was bidding for his second Top 10 win after beating Alex de Minaur earlier this season in Los Cabos. The American took the match to Sinner at times and was vocal as he wriggled out of two tight service games late in set two. But after Sinner forced deuce for the third straight time on the Michelsen serve, the pressure yielded the decisive break.

While Sinner said he is still working his way toward full fitness, he was pleased to ensure he will have at least one more outing to improve in that regard.

"For sure not 100 per cent yet [physically], but I'm trying to get used to these kind of conditions," he said.