Jannik Sinner will return to the court this week at the China Open, hopeful of adding another ATP Tour title following his US Open final loss to Carlos Alcaraz.
Sinner relinquished his world number one spot to Alcaraz 17 days ago after being comprehensively beaten by his Spanish rival in the last major final of the year.
The Italian will be hoping to bounce back at the Asian tournament, which begins on September 25.
Sinner will also be hoping to avenge his loss in last year’s final: the Italian lost to Alcaraz in a marathon three-set match, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6.
Fans of the Italian star will be pleased ahead of this year’s tournament, after the four-time Grand Slam champion provided an update regarding his physical and mental health.
Jannik Sinner says he is in ‘good shape’ ahead of the China Open
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Sinner said: “Yeah, I mean, it’s again great to be back in a tournament.
“After the US Open, the body’s in good shape. Mind also. Had some good time off after US Open.
“Yeah, we are preparing ourselves in the best possible way. Of course, first round is never easy in any tournament. So let’s see what I can do tomorrow.
“But in everything, I’m very happy to be back again. Hopefully to play some good tennis.
“But we try to prepare ourselves in the best possible way. Obviously, I’m very [much] looking forward to playing again here in China, and we’ll see how it goes.
Sinner faces a tough first-round match against 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic.
The Croat has been a surprise factor this season, becoming the oldest grass-court champion in the history of the ATP Challenger Tour before upsetting Jack Draper at Wimbledon.
If he defeats Cilic, Sinner will face either China’s Zhizhen Zhang or Cincinnati Open phenomenon Terence Atmane in the second round.
Jannik Sinner comments on the US Open final
During the same press conference, Sinner was asked about how his game ‘stacks up’ against Alcaraz’s.
A reporter asked: “Back to the US Open. You were so honest and candid after the loss about the talk of wanting to add unpredictability to your game.
“Carlos had said, ‘Yeah, we had a training block dedicated to getting better at dealing with Jannik’s game.’ A lot of honesty from two rivals.
“How long had you been thinking about where your game was stacking up against Carlos’, where you needed to improve, even before the US Open final?”
Sinner replied: “Well, the situation of what I’ve been through throughout this year has not been easy, starting with great run in Australia obviously. Afterwards, whatever happened, happened.
“I didn’t play a big amount of tournaments, too, I have to say. This is only my eighth tournament of the year, which is not much. We are heading already in [towards] the end of the year.
“But at the same time, look, we’ve been reflecting a lot on that final. We are working on new things. We are changing a lot of small things where I’m thinking of now. The amount of mistakes at the moment is for sure a little bit higher, but I hope that this after recovers in a very positive way, no?
“It’s just a question of time. Let’s see how long I take it. I don’t know how much I’m able to do it on actual match court because one thing is practice and one thing is match. Let’s see.
“Yeah, I’m very motivated. It’s great to work on something new, then we see how this ends up. We always try to move forward. One step in front is always better than two steps back. Let’s see what we can do.”
Sinner and Alcaraz are not fated to meet at an ATP event this week. While Sinner competes in China, Alcaraz will be playing at the Japan Open.
