Jannik Sinner withdraws from China Open with lingering right knee injury

Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from the ATP China Open in Beijing, the Italian announced in a video message posted on September 25, ahead of the tournament’s scheduled September 30 start. He cited a lingering right knee injury (extra-articular tendinitis/inflammation) as the reason for his decision.

Sinner has not played since winning at Wimbledon, and his expected return to the tour had been widely anticipated. He had been expected to feature in Beijing but there were reports he was still not at his best physically. He missed the entire North-American hard-court swing and the US Open because of the right knee injury (extra-articular tendinitis/inflammation). Unconfirmed reports suggested he had been doing practice hits in Turin while his team preferred not to push the recovery.

Sinner confirmed the withdrawal in a video posted on September 25 on X. “Hello everyone, Jannik here. I want to send the warmest greetings to the Chinese fans. I’m very sorry to announce that I won’t be able to play in Beijing this year”, Sinner said in his video message on X. “My knee is not where I would like it to be, and I’m not ready to compete, but I will do everything possible to be there on court as soon as I can.”

The 25-year-old Italian will also drop 500 ranking points as he will not return to defend his crown. He noted his affection for the event, having enjoyed “winning the title last year” in Beijing.

With Sinner absent, the China Open field will be headed by two-time Grand Slam winner Alexander Zverev. Félix Auger-Aliassime, Daniil Medvedev and Flavio Cobolli complete the top four of the entry list. Also in the spotlight will be returning six-time China Open champion Novak Djokovic, who has never lost a match in Beijing so far.

Sinner’s stated priority is to play the year-end ATP Finals, which will take place in Turin in November, and he has said he wants to defend his title at the end of the season and be fit for the next cycle. Should he not regain complete fitness, he could potentially miss further action, including tournaments in Shanghai and Vienna.