What many tennis fans feared would happen with Jannik Sinner has come true: The ATP No. 1 will not be playing at the Cincinnati Open due to a knee injury. Sinner's withdrawal is the latest in a series of top-player withdrawals from tournaments in 2026.
Carlos Alcaraz, of course, hasn't played since April after suffering a wrist injury at the Barcelona Open. He was hoping to return for the Cincinnati Masters, but recently confirmed he won't. He is still hoping to return for the US Open.
Meanwhile, Sinner suffered a literal meltdown from the heat at the French Open in the second round and lost in five sets to Juan Manuel Cerundolo after Sinner was just a game away from taking the match in the third set. The Italian then didn't play again until Wimbledon, which he won. He is now looking at not playing again until the US Open.
Jannik Sinner withdraws from the Cincinnati Open
The men's side of tennis does have a lot of depth and talent, but fans cannot dismiss the fact that the ATP side of the sport has become reliant on the appearances of Sinner and Alcaraz at tournaments. The reason is simple and understandable: They are the two best players in men's tennis, and the third-best isn't very close.
Since Alcaraz's injury, though, tennis fans have not seen the Spaniard play for at least five months if he plays in New York, and Sinner has only played a handful of tournaments. In fact, just two since Roland Garros, when he didn't play very long.
Tennis needs the young superstars, but due to injuries, they haven't been playing. The effect has been fairly brutal.
Assuming, hopefully, that Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner do play at the US Open, what to expect from them is unknown. Besides their injuries, a level of rust will exist. Alcaraz will not have played any warm-up tournaments, and neither will Sinner. If they play, expecting them to be in top form is likely expecting too much.
The hidden part of this argument is that the tennis season might simply be too long and needs to be shortened. Top men's players need to participate in tournaments from January until the year-end event at the ATP Finals in November. Few other sports allow for only a one-month layoff between seasons.
Playing hours on the court for months on end takes a difficult toll on the body, as proven by Sinner and Alcaraz. That's too much talent to lose for too long a year. Changes to the schedule probably need to be made.
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