World No. 1 Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from the China Open in Beijing, confirming on Friday that his right knee has not recovered sufficiently for a competitive return. The decision means the Italian will remain sidelined since his Wimbledon triumph on July 12 — more than 11 weeks without a match — and puts his participation at the Shanghai Masters in serious doubt.
Sinner, 25, broke the news in a video posted to his social media accounts. "I'm very sorry to announce that I won't be able to play in Beijing this year," he said. "My knee is not where I would like it to be, and I'm not ready to compete yet, but I will do everything possible to be back on court as soon as I can."
The defending champion, who won the China Open in both 2023 and 2025, expressed his disappointment at missing the tournament again. "What I miss the most is, of course, the tournament, the fans and the atmosphere. I've had a great time in the past, including winning the title last year, and I'm very disappointed that I cannot defend it this year, but I'm very happy to come back next year."
The withdrawal extends an injury absence that has already cost Sinner the Canadian Open, the Cincinnati Open, and the US Open. The right knee inflammation that first surfaced after his grueling second-round defeat at the French Open in June has now kept him off the tour for nearly three months. Despite dominating the first half of 2026 with a 44-3 record and six titles — including his fifth Grand Slam at Wimbledon — Sinner has been unable to build on that momentum.
The ranking implications are significant. Sinner currently leads Alexander Zverev by 1,810 points at the top of the ATP rankings, but that gap will shrink by at least 440 points in the next update. Zverev, who won both Roland Garros and the US Open this year, is entered in Beijing, Shanghai, and Vienna over the coming weeks and could close further on the Italian's lead.
More critically, Sinner has 1,500 points to defend from his end-of-season run in 2025, when he won the Beijing and Vienna ATP 500 events, the Paris Masters 1000, and the ATP Finals in Turin. Zverev, by contrast, had a far less productive finish to last season and stands to gain significantly in the year's closing months.
The next date on Sinner's calendar could be the Vienna Open, an ATP 500 tournament beginning October 26. A return there would give him roughly five weeks of match play before the ATP Finals in Turin in November, though he has made no public commitment beyond expressing his desire to compete as soon as possible.
For Zverev, the door is wide open. The German, 29, is enjoying the best season of his career with two Grand Slam titles and a consistent presence in the latter stages of every major tournament. If Sinner remains absent through Shanghai, Zverev could potentially overtake him before the year-end finals.
The situation leaves the men's tour without its top-ranked player at one of its most important Asian swing events. The China Open, which begins September 30, will now be headlined by Zverev, Novak Djokovic, and Carlos Alcaraz, with Sinner watching from home and hoping his knee finally cooperates.
Sources
- https://www.afp.com/en/world-no1-sinner-delays-return-china-open-withdrawal
- https://www.nbcsports.com/tennis/news/jannik-sinner-withdraws-from-the-china-open-because-of-lingering-knee-injury
