Sinner withdraws from Madrid Open as hip injury sparks French Open fitness race

Jannik Sinner has pulled out of the Madrid Open through injury, the player has confirmed on social media.

The Italian, who won the Australian Open in January, is the top seed in Madrid and has been forced to miss his quarter-final tie on Thursday with Felix Auger-Aliassime.

In a post on social media, Sinner explained that he has been advised to pull out his clash with the American due to a growing hip problem.

“Very sad to have to withdraw from my next match here in Madrid,” Sinner wrote on X.

“My hip has been bothering me this week and has slowly been getting more painful.

“Taking the advice from the doctors we decided it’s best to not play further and make it worse.”

He added: “I’ll be doing some more tests in the coming days and follow the advice from the specialists on recovery. Thank you guys for all your support.”

Sinner was already a doubt coming into his last-eight match with Auger-Aliassime, and the confirmation of his absence has also cast doubt on his availability to play at the French Open next month.

The 20-year-old, who reached the quarter-finals in Paris in 2020, was knocked out in the second round last year while making the fourth round in both 2021 and 2022.

If fit enough, he would head into this year’s tournament with an impressive 28-2 record under his belt this season.

Having wrapped up his first Grand Slam in Australia earlier this year, Sinner has also won the Rotterdam Open and the Miami Open.

The 22-year-old was also in great form in Madrid where he beat compatriot Lorenzo Sonego in the opening round, before moving past Pavel Kotov and Karen Khachanov to reach the last eight.