Sinner to play in French Open only if 100% fit

Jannik Sinner has called into question his participation in the French Open, saying he will only compete later this month if he fully recovers from a hip injury that forced him to withdraw from Madrid and Rome.

Sinner sustained the injury in Madrid and withdrew from his quarter-final against Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada last week, before deciding to skip the Rome tournament, which runs from May 8 to 19.

The 22-year-old, who won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January, said the injury was more serious than originally thought.

"At Roland Garros, I'll only play if I'm 100%, if there's any doubt we have to see," Sinner told reporters.

"Some injuries can be prevented, some can't. So far we've done a great job, last year I played a whole season without injuries and also in this season so far."

Sinner stated that he could prioritise his health over the year's second Grand Slam, which starts on May 26.

"Now I'll have a period without playing... we need to see how to work from next week onwards," Sinner added.

"Preparation for Roland Garros will clearly not be optimal. We'll give our best to get there in the best possible conditions to compete, but playing a Grand Slam without matches in Rome isn't easy."

"With the MRI we saw that something isn't 100% OK. However, we have everything under control. If it doesn't get 100% cured, I'll stop a little longer. Taking care of the body is more important than everything else."

SportsLigue