Jannik Sinner stunned the tennis world when he confirmed he would not be playing the US Open this year due to a knee injury.
The Italian has not played a tennis tournament since winning Wimbledon in July and rumours were circulating about a potential injury to the world No 1.
He confirmed the news with a statement confirming he would be missing his first Grand Slam since 2019.
On social media, Sinner wrote: “Even though I have been working hard with my team and my medical staff, we have now had to make the difficult decision that I will not be able to compete at the US Open this year.
“We have been back on court in Monte Carlo over the last couple of days and have realised that I still need more time to recover from my right knee issue. I’m obviously very sad and disappointed, as New York has a special place in my heart.
“I was very much looking forward to coming back and playing in the electric atmosphere in front of the great fans there.”
Now, Greg Rusedski has offered up his opinion on Sinner’s withdrawal and he believes he knows the exact moment the Italian injured his knee.
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Speaking on Off Court with Greg Rusedski, the former US Open finalist said: “Well, on reflection, I was looking at Wimbledon, remember he had that terrible slide in the opening round that he got up from and his knee went in all sorts of different directions and he still managed to power through and win the title.
“So I think he might’ve tweaked his knee at Wimbledon, but he obviously found a way to get through, win the championships and we haven’t really seen him since.
“So from my point of view, the knee was probably bothering him through the championships, this is all speculation, of course, found a way to win that, then went to go visit his doctors and might’ve tweaked it again in practise.”
However, Rusedski believes Sinner is ultimately making the right decision by withdrawing from the US Open, rather than playing through the pain.
“He’s taking the smart route,” said the former world No. 4. “Let’s not play, let’s take care of the body, I’ve got to think of the next decade. And for all of us, it’s a bit of surprise because we were talking about, okay, is he going to win all the Master series in one year, what’s going to happen with Jannick Sinner, but you know, he consulted his doctors, didn’t play a lead up tournament and decided to pull out.
“So that’s a smart thing. We hope it’s not too serious because we’ve missed Carlos Alcaraz for such a long period of time, we don’t want to miss Jannik Sinner.
“This rivalry was heating up, we were having our new big three, as you described it, whether you add Zverev or you add Djokovic in the mix and everything was getting exciting.
“So missing Sinner at the US Open is a big blow and who knows where Carlos is going to be when he gets to New York as well. So, so many question marks.”
Alcaraz will be playing his first tournament for five months at the US Open, since he injured his wrist at the Barcelona Open.
He will be the second seed at the tournament, behind Alexander Zverev, following Sinner’s withdrawal from the final Grand Slam of the year.
The post Greg Rusedski delivers his verdict on Jannik Sinner’s US Open withdrawal appeared first on Tennis365.
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