Carlos Alcaraz was able to get revenge for the Wimbledon final over Jannik Sinner, but perhaps not in the way he would have expected or wanted.
Sinner had been struggling with illness from the day before the final and was unable to recover in time.
The world number one was forced to retire after losing the first five games, with Alcaraz attempting to comfort Sinner at the net.
Alcaraz continued his warm words towards Sinner, before admitting he noticed something ‘weird’ about his rival when reflecting on the match.
Carlos Alcaraz explains what ‘weird’ thing Jannik Sinner was doing in the Cincinnati Open final
Alcaraz won 21 of the 29 points played against Sinner, and broke the Italian three times in the five games that they played.
Sinner had only been broken three times in his five previous matches combined, hitting multiple erratic and uncharacteristic unforced errors.
Alcaraz and Sinner have played some thrilling finals this year, and the Spaniard admitted he could tell something was not right after the third game.
“I think after the third game I noticed that he wasn’t feeling good at all,” Alcaraz said in his post-match press conference. “I know him, I have been battling against him for the last two years having great matches and great battles. I know his style, and I know his game.
“After the third game I noted that he was more aggressive than he used to be. He was missing more often and before the third shot, it was pretty weird from him.
“So I just noticed his body language was not the best, so it was about in the third game that I noticed that he wasn’t feeling good.”
When was the last time that Jannik Sinner retired from a tennis match?
Seeing Sinner retire in a match is not something we have become used to, in fact it has not happened in over two years.
This is the first time that Sinner has retired in the final of an ATP tournament, with his last mid-match withdrawal coming at the Halle Open in 2023.
That was where he retired against Alexander Bublik, who beat Sinner in Halle again this year, before recovering in time for Wimbledon.
Sinner will be hoping that it will be a similar situation for him this year, as he now has less than a week to prepare for defending the US Open title.
Not only will the US Open be on the line, but Sinner is also defending his world number one ranking from Alcaraz.
Sinner has been questioned over his decision to enter US Open mixed doubles, which he has now all but confirmed he will not be playing.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
