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For years, Kei Nishikori flew the flag for Asian tennis and his trailblazing as seen a whole new generation of stars come through.

Nishikori has been as high as World No 4 in the ATP Tour rankings in his career and he collected 12 career titles between 2008 and 2019.

The Japanese star is playing out the final year of his career, but he will be buoyed by the number of talented Asian players at the top of the sport.

The likes of Naomi Osaka, Alexandra Eala, Janice Tjen, and Xinyu Wang, are all currently inside the top 50 of the WTA Tour rankings.

Nishikori has been particularly impressed by Eala in the past two years, after her breakout two seasons on the WTA Tour in 2025 and 2026.

Speaking at the Washington Open, Nishikori said Eala has what it takes to continue to climb up the rankings, after she recently secured a career high spot of World No 26.

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“I hope she can jump up again,” said Nishikori. “She has been playing well the last two years. She has a lot of weapons. She can be top 10 if she can stay healthy.”

Both Nishikori and Eala are set to appear at the Washington Open, the first tournament on the North American hardcourt swing.

Nishikori has received a wildcard for the event and he is set to play another Asian star in the first round of the tournament: Jerry Shang.

Shang is currently outside the top 200 of the ATP Tour rankings, but he has previously been as high as World No 47 in his career.

Eala, meanwhile, is set to get her Washington Open campaign underway against Qinwen Zheng, who has also received a wildcard from the WTA 500 event.

Zheng is a stalwart of the women’s game and has previously achieved fantastic things in tennis.

The Chinese star has reached a Grand Slam final, at the Australian Open in 2024, and she claimed the Olympic Gold Medal at the Paris Games in 2024.

Both Nishikori and Eala will have their work cut out to reach the next stage of the Washington Open, but they will both be desperate to get their North American hardcourt swing underway in positive fashion, for differing reasons.

Eala has a genuine chance to crack the top 20 of the WTA Tour rankings during this swing, as she is defending just 70 points until the US Open.

For Nishikori, however, it will mark his swansong at the Washington Open. The star is set to retire later this year, with many predicting it could come during the Asian swing in September and October.

The post Alex Eala tipped to become a top 10 player by former US Open finalist appeared first on Tennis365.

Jannik Sinner’s season in 2026 has seen him continue to dominate the ATP Tour.

The Italian has already collected six titles in the first seven months of the season, including the second Wimbledon championship of his career.

The World No 1 has lost just three times in his 47 matches so far this year, and those came against Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open, Jakub Mensik at the Qatar Open, and Juan Manuel Cerundolo at Roland Garros.

Sinner’s understated manner often means his hard work goes unnoticed away from the court, but his coach, Simone Vagnozzi, has made a stunning claim about the star.

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In an interview with Corriere della Sera, the Italian coach said: “He’s a fearful worker. I’ve had to motivate him two or three times in five years. His greatest quality is wanting people by his side who tell him what he doesn’t want to hear.

“It all starts with attitude and the desire to improve: you have to find the courage to make mistakes, even to fail. Jannik has a significant base of mental strength, we’ve just multiplied it. He has innate gifts. You don’t become a colt if you’re a nag.

“Now you can see that he can hit aces in the important moments, but for that to happen you have to feel confident in your shot because you’ve worked on it for hours and hours in training.”

It should be a major worry to the rest of Sinner’s ATP Tour rivals that the star does not need any real motivation from his coaches.

If Vagnozzi’s claim about Sinner’s work ethic is correct, which would not be surprising, that means most of what we saw from the Italian on court is entirely down to him.

Along with his exceptional prowess, Sinner’s mentality is the key reason why he’s been able to dominate the entirety of the ATP Tour for so long.

Even if a player comes along who is as powerful and technical as Sinner is currently, they will also have to be a cut above mentally in order to challenge the World No 1.

That is why he is far and away the top-ranked player in the world and that shows no signs of stopping until the start of the 2027 season at the very earliest.

Sinner is currently 5290 ranking points above the second spot and for a player of the Italian’s form, that is going to make it incredibly hard to dislodge him from the summit of the ATP Tour.

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Jannik Sinner has been near-perfect in 2026, but there is one glaring worry for the World No 1 across the season.

The Italian completely capitulated in the second round of Roland Garros and it cost him his very first Grand Slam at the Paris tournament.

Sinner was two sets and a break up against Juan Manuel Cerundolo when he completely lost his way, from what looked like a combination of heat exhaustion and fatigue issues.

The World No 1 had played a lot of tennis on the European clay court swing, winning Monte Carlo, Madrid, and Rome back-to-back, but it was still a major concern for Sinner.

He bounced back beautifully at Wimbledon to win the title for a second consecutive year, which makes his issues at Roland Garros even stranger.

His coach, Simone Vagnozzi, has finally revealed his thoughts on the matter in a new interview with Corriere della Sera.

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Asked what the issues behind Sinner’s capitulation were, Vagnozzi responded: “I don’t think there’s a single cause; many small things, when combined, can lead to these small slumps, but let’s remember that there have been four in the last five years.

“These guys aren’t robots. Heat, fatigue, and tension can all combine. The temperature in Paris was prohibitive, and he arrived there under significant physical and mental stress.

“In short, there’s no single factor; in that case, it would be easier for us to correct it. We have to live with these episodes, working to avoid them. There can be a strong, stupid player. But there can never be a stupid champion.”

Sinner might have bounced back from his early Roland Garros exit, but it is still clearly lingering in his mind.

The star has opted not to play the Canadian Open to begin his North American swing, despite the fact he has played little tennis over the summer.

The star’s appearance at Wimbledon was his only competitive tennis action since the 28th May, when he was dispatched by Cerundolo at the French Open.

That means Sinner has played just seven matches in two months, so he is surely fresh enough to compete at the Canadian Open.

The star is clearly being selective with the tournaments he plays after his gruelling time on the clay court swing.

If Sinner is able to win the US Open for the first time since 2024, his decision will surely be the right one.

Sinner’s next tournament is now expected to be the Cincinnati Open, which is set to begin on August 13th. The Italian reached the final of the tournament in 2025.

The post Jannik Sinner’s coach says what critics misunderstand about his fatigue issues appeared first on Tennis365.

The Canadian Open was once one of the biggest events on the tennis calendar, but it’s become a footnote for many of the top players in recent years.

The tournament has been won by the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, and Novak Djokovic since 2000, but the last two years at least has seen players shun the event.

Novak Djokovic has not played the tournament since 2018, while Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner’s omission from this year’s event means they won’t have played the tournament since 2023.

That has tended to lead to more opportunities for lesser-ranked players at the event, with Ben Shelton and Leylah Fernandez landing the titles in 2025.

However, this year’s event has seen just as many lower-ranked stars drop out as top ranked stars, as the likes of Jack Draper and Holger Rune have joined Alcaraz, Djokovic, and Sinner.

ATP players to withdraw from the Canadian Open

• Carlos Alcaraz
• Jannik Sinner
• Novak Djokovic
• Jack Draper
• Holger Rune
• Tomas Machac
• Sebastian Korda

Tomas Machac and Sebastian Korda have also confirmed they will not be playing the event, as they both try to recover from injuries that kept them out of Wimbledon.

The top seeds at the event on the men’s side will now be Alexander Zverev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Alex de Minaur. Zverev is the only player of the top three seeds to win the event, but that came all the way back in 2017, when he defeated Federer in the final.

On the WTA Tour side, Karolina Muchova, who confirmed she would not be playing the event after undergoing ‘small surgery’ following her Wimbledon final appearance, will not be playing the Toronto event.

WTA stars who have pulled out of the Canadian Open

• Karolina Muchova
• Victoria Mboko
• Hailey Baptiste
• Emma Raducanu
• Jasmine Paolini
• Dayana Yastremska
• Petra Marčinko

Tennishead are reporting that World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka will not be playing the event, although that is yet to be confirmed by the Masters event.

Muchova will be joined by Victoria Mboko and Hailey Baptiste, both of whom have suffered major knee injuries in the 2026 season.

Baptiste suffered an ACL and meniscus injury in her left knee at Roland Garros, while Mboko suffered an MCL injury on her left knee after a fall at Queen’s.

Elsewhere, the stress fracture in Emma Raducanu’s foot, which kept her out of Wimbledon at the last minute, will also force her to miss the Canadian Open.

Jasmine Paolini, Dayana Yastremska, and Petra Marinko will also not be playing the Masters event.

The top seeds in the women’s draw will now be Elena Rybakina, Jessica Pegula, and Coco Gauff. Pegula is a two-time winner of the event, but Rybakina and Gauff are yet to claim the title.

The post Canadian Open withdrawal list: 12 top stars join Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner by pulling out of the event appeared first on Tennis365.

Carlos Alcaraz is set to step up his recovery from the wrist injury that has left him on the sidelines since April, with former British No 1 Greg Rusedski suggesting there is a clear deadline on the horizon for the Spaniard.

Alcaraz missed the French Open and Wimbledon with the wrist injury he picked up at the Barcelona Open, with a recent social media post suggesting he is a long way from playing top tier tennis again, with the 23-year-old striking the ball gently in what looked like the early stages of a comeback.

Further question marks were raised as Alcaraz made an appearance at the World Cup final in New Jersey with a wrist support still evident just to watch Spain beat Argentina.

Now Rusedski has given his verdict on Alcaraz’s hopes of playing at the US Open next month, as he believes he is hoping to use the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati as his fitness test ahead of the final Grand Slam of the year.

“To have any chance to play at the US Open, he’s gotta play Cincinnati,” he declared on the edition of his Off Court with Greg Rusedski podcast that will be released on Monday.

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“If he plays Cincinnati and the wrist holds up, that is exciting news for our sport, because we definitely need him back.

“If he doesn’t play Cincinnati, we know the US Open isn’t gonna happen and he’s been away from the game for very, very long time.

“He’s got to be smart with it because the fact he’s got to get his volume up to a certain level and you don’t want to rush it back too much.

“The 12-day event in Cincinnati might actually help him because the fact that he can have a few more breaks in between matches, but this is still a huge question marks.

“It’s not like you’re playing a two-out-of-three major. So for the women’s, it’s a little bit easier because when you go into the majors, it’s like a regular week with a guaranteed day off every week is two out of three sets. To make the jump up to three out of five sets is tough for the men.

“From what I saw from that original video, I wasn’t thinking would play at the US Open, but we need him back in our sport and we’ll find out. Cincinnati, fingers crossed he’s back because we miss Carlos. I really hope he’s back in Cincinnati and healthy.”

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Rusedski went on to suggest Alcaraz was wise to use a wrist support when he accepted an official role to be part of the World Cup final.

Alcaraz had the task of bringing the trophy onto the pitch prior to kick-off, with Rusedski pointing out a role of that nature will force him to put his wrist in the line of fire.

“You gotta shake people’s hands a lot when you take on a tole like that at the World Cup,” he added. “If you have one person all of a sudden give you a big handshake, you’re gonna put that injury back in there. So I think it was clever that he had the tape on the World Cup.”

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The post Carlos Alcaraz set a deadline to make a decision on his comeback by former British No 1 appeared first on Tennis365.

Emma Raducanu has struggled to build any momentum in an injury and illness-hit 2026 season and now she is about to suffer an inevitable slide down the WTA Rankings.

The British No 1 is currently on the sidelines once again with a stress fracture in her foot that ended her hopes of playing in her home Grand Slam at Wimbledon.

Raducanu confirmed the injury emerged after she played three matches in quick succession to reach the final of the WTA 500 tournament at the Queen’s Club in June, with her time on the sidelines set to be costly to her ranking.

The 2021 US Open champion reached the semi-finals at the WTA 500 tournament in Washington this time last season, but those ranks are about to drop off her ranking and the live WTA list highlights the impact that will have.

The updated list shows that Raducanu will slide down 12 places to No 49 in the updated rankings and that slide is likely to get even worse by the time she returns to the court.

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She had already pulled out of upcoming WTA 1000 tournaments in Canada and Cincinnati and that will ensure more valuable rankings points drop off her tally.

If she then pulls out of the US Open, and that seems highly likely at this stage of her recovery, another 130 points will come off her record.

It means that by the time she returns to action, Raducanu could be ranked around No 85 and that would not be enough for her to gain entry into top tier WTA events.

Her status as a Grand Slam champion earned her plenty of wildcards in the period after her US Open win, but that was a long time ago and there are more credible candidates for tournament organisers to add to their draw now.

So Raducanu may be forced to enter qualifying events if she wants to continue to play top level events and former British No 1 Greg Rusedski admits she faces a challenging period when she returns.

“I think you have to be in the team to really know what the issue is,” said Rusedski on his podcast.

“It depends on how you’re training, how you’re loading, what’s happening. I don’t have enough information, but all I know is we have a lot of talented players in Britain and we need to find a way to keep them healthy.

“Also, consistency of team helps, consistency of training. You can’t take long periods of time off. Even when you’re on holiday, you still need to hit balls. You still need to go to the gym. You need to keep it going because stop starting.

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“I remember when Roger Federer was at the peak of his powers and he was still hitting tennis balls when he went on holiday with his family. That’s what you need to do.

“I’m a recreational player now, but if I stop for a few weeks and then I got a seniors event or something, I’m sore. I’m stiff. I don’t bounce back as quickly. So it’s easier for me if I’m just training consistently.

“You need the same approach as the pros. And you have to get that sort of impact and volume. And for Emma at Queen’s, the problem was she’s played so many back-to-back matches.

“So she wasn’t trained for her body to be able to do that. You can say it’s bad luck, but you have to be prepared sometimes to play two matches in a day and maybe back-to-back two matches.

“I just wish her well. I want to see her healthy. I want to see all our Brits healthy and going in the right direction. But you’ve got to have a look at the sports science behind it as well because something is not right when we have this many of them injured all the time.”

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In the absence of Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev has stepped up to the plate and done everything he can to compete with Jannik Sinner.

The star ended his wait for a first Grand Slam title by winning Roland Garros earlier this year, capitalising on Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic’s early exit.

He continued his good form into Wimbledon, a tournament he a never previously succeeded at. Prior to the 2026 event, Zverev had not made it past the fourth round of the grass court Grand Slam.

Buoyed by the fact he is now a Grand Slam champion, Zverev reached the final for the first time and pushed Sinner in a high quality final on Centre Court.

Zverev took the opening set against Sinner, but eventually lost the final in four sets.

Now at World No 2 in the ATP Tour rankings, Andrea Petkovic believes the German now has what it takes to reach the summit of the ATP Tour for the first time in his career.

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Speaking to Sport1, Petkovic said: “I think that window of opportunity is definitely there. If Sascha continues where he left off at Wimbledon, the chance is absolutely there.

“Of course, Sinner and Alcaraz will continue to set the tone, so it will be anything but easy. At first, I had the feeling that the old and the new Alexander Zverev were on the court at the same time. The longer the season went on, the more the new style of play prevailed.

“Wimbledon finally showed me that he now completely believes in this game. This is no longer a short-term adjustment, but his new identity on the court. He is more mature, more robust today and knows very well which path he wants to take.”

Zverev is next set to be in action at the Canadian Open, where he will be the top seed after Jannik Sinner confirmed he would not play the Masters event.

The German has not won the Masters event since 2017, when he defeated Roger Federer, Denis Shapovalov, and Kevin Anderson to lift the title.

He will be the overwhelming favourite to win the Canadian Open now, as Novak Djokovic is not playing the event either. If he does win the Canadian Open he will earn yet more ranking points and continue to close the gap between he and Sinner.

After Wimbledon, 4970 ranking points split Zverev and the World No 1, so there is still plenty of work to do for the Roland Garros champion. However, things can change very quickly on the ATP Tour.

The post Alexander Zverev told he now has an ‘opportunity’ to become World No 1 appeared first on Tennis365.

With the withdrawal list for tennis tournaments having become as big a talking point as the matches on the court, it is clear that the sport now has a problem.

It was no surprise when Canadian Open organisers confirmed that both world No 1 Jannik Sinner and 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic have joined the injured Carlos Alcaraz by confirming they will not be playing in Montreal next month, with the eagerness for elite players to add breaks into their season leaving this first Masters 1000 event of the North American hard court swing open to withdrawals.

Sinner and Djokovic can use the Cincinnati Open later in August as their warm-up event for the US Open and it leaves the Canadian tournament grappling for credibility as it has become the tournament players are happy to skip.

The ATP 1000 tournaments are mandatory events and dropping out of them means players receive a smaller pay-out from the ATP bonus pool payments at the end of the season.

Yet money is not a huge motivation for wealthy superstars like Sinner and Djokovic’s status, as their bank balances have not been a motivating factor for many years now.

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The reason why this latest withdrawal announcement felt different was the reaction that came from Canadian Open officials, as they confirmed talks are underway with the ATP Tour to try and alleviate the issues of persistent withdrawals.

“We are obviously very disappointed that Jannik and Novak won’t be joining us in Montreal this year, especially after they also withdrew from last year’s tournament in Toronto,” said the Canadian Open’s tournament director Valerie Tetreault.

“We respect their decisions and understand that, with such a demanding schedule, players’ health must remain the priority.

“That said, we believe the frequency of these last-minute withdrawals in the last few years raises a broader issue for our sport.

“Masters 1000 events are among the flagship tournaments on the tour, and fans rightfully expect to see the world’s best compete.

“We are already in discussions with the ATP to ensure this matter receives serious consideration.”

Would the ATP Tour consider a rule change that could see top players punished if they don’t play in Masters 1000 events? That seems highly unlikely.

The financial incentives the ATP Tour have put in place to encourage players to play in their nine marquee events may be the only weapon tennis chiefs have to encourage them to play, as the prospect of punishing players by taking ranking points away from them would cause an internal rift that would not be welcomed.

Changing the calendar is another option, but finding space for extra weeks to move tournaments has been hugely hampered by the ATP Tour’s decision to move most of their Masters 1000 events into 12-day competitions rather than a traditional one-week event.

Once again, that decision was inspired by a drive to increase revenues and give players more prize money, so reducing those events back down to seven days would negatively impact both the rewards for players and the improvements of facilities at tournament venues.

The brutal truth must be that the Canadian Open has now become the most diluted Masters 1000 event of ATP Tour year and it would be no surprise if more big names pull out over the next week.

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It is a real shame for Canadian tennis fans who have also seen a host of big name withdrawals in the WTA Tour 1000 event also being staged in their country in the opening week of August, but there is no obvious solution to a crisis driven by the desire to regenerate as much revenue as possible for players who are demanding more and more cash from those running the sport.

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Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic have once again confirmed they will be missing the Canadian Open as the debate about the intensity of the tennis schedule continues to rumble on.

Masters events are the seconds biggest tournaments on the ATP Tour calendar, behind only the four Grand Slams.

So why are the likes of Djokovic and Sinner so happy to withdraw from them and subsequently miss out on a potential 1000 ATP Tour ranking points?

Andy Murray predicted this last season when he sent a fierce warning to ATP Tour organisers about what might happen due to the new two-week format of Masters events.

Speaking at the Madrid Open last year, Murray suggested the potential sanctions for missing a Masters event were not strong enough to convince players to play the tournaments.

At present, players can automatic ranking penalties, financial fines, and potential suspension from tournaments, although there have not been many severe examples in recent years.

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“I never made decisions based on bonus pool, but it would be more about: Will I get a zero point, or might it affect my ranking, this might have been something I would have considered, but then as I got older and when I reflect on it, and also as I’ve said to some coaches who work with younger players: You don’t have to play those events,” he said.

“Everyone says the schedule is very long, which it is. It’s definitely a long season. And now, with the two-week events, it’s quite demanding. But you also always have the choice not to play.

“Yes, you might get a zero point, lose a few ranking points, or not be part of a bonus pool. But that’s a decision, either you’re saying, ‘I don’t want to play,’ or ‘I’m making a decision to play because it’s better for me financially.’

Sinner and Djokovic’s withdrawals from the Canadian Open is not likely to change their ranking, or subsequent career, and that is also something Murray acknowledged last year.

“Players have the option not to play if they don’t want to,” he said. “It’s not like anything really bad happens. It’s not like you get a suspension or you can’t play future events. It’s just a zero pointer on your ranking. It’s not a big deal.”

Either the ATP Tour needs to make changes to the hectic nature of the tennis calendar or it needs to double down and start providing bigger sanctions on players who miss the biggest events in the calendar.

Otherwise there will be more withdrawals from key events across the season.

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Doubles is becoming increasingly more under threat recently, with the ATP Tour unveiling plans to cut the amount of tournaments in half.

Doubles specialist have spoken up about the matter and have suggested the format is down to a lack of marketing from the ATP Tour, rather than the popularity of doubles.

The likes of Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool, who won Wimbledon together in 2025, have hit back at the ATP Tour’s newest ideas.

“We’re all members of the ATP, we all pay membership and the reason it was set up was to protect players,” said Cash in an interview with BBC Sport. “It’s not to try and kill parts of the sport.”

Now, another doubles star has suggested what singles stars, including Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, could do to try and save doubles.

In a new interview, as shared by Tennis Temple, Sadio Doumbia explained why doubles is failing while singles action is as popular as ever.

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“Today, what sells are the great champions: Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, or the players from the host country. Location also matters, of course.People also go to Roland Garros or Wimbledon for the charm of the place, and the stands are always full.”

Doumbia believes more stars need to start playing doubles and he’s suggested Alcaraz and Sinner’s double debut would be huge news for the format.

“What generates revenue are the tournaments, and the stars. If Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz played doubles together tomorrow, everyone would go see them instead of a singles between two top 20 players,” he said.

“People would rather watch Jannik practice than a match between world No. 50 and No. 80.If tomorrow Sinner and Alcaraz played doubles together, everyone would choose to watch them rather than a singles between two top 20 players.

“We live in an era of extreme ‘starification’. People prefer watching Sinner practice rather than an official match between world No. 50 and No. 80. We are fascinated by stars. The problem is not doubles, but the lack of true superstars in this specialty.”

Doubles tends to be very popular with audiences at Grand Slams, particularly at this year’s Wimbledon, but it is at smaller events where crowds seem to dwindle.

Nevertheless, it is extremely short-sighted by the ATP Tour to cut back on doubles events, rather than try and promote them better and get them seen by a wider audience.

Promoting doubles stars and matches view their social media pages would be a terrific start, but it is certainly not time to scrap a format that has been the backbone of tennis for a very long time.

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