CINCINNATI: World num­ber one Jannik Sinner said he had taken the right decision by opting for a long break following his Wimbledon triumph, and the recharged Italian is ready to fire at the Cincinnati Open where he will defend his title.

The 23-year-old lost a marathon French Open final to rival Carlos Alcaraz in June before gaining revenge over the Spaniard at the All England Club last month to secure his fourth Grand Slam title overall and second of a difficult season in which he served a short ban for an inadvertent doping offence.

Sinner opted to prioritise his health following that victory and will return after a near month-long absence from the circuit when he takes to the court over the weekend in Cincinnati after getting a first-round bye. It is the final big event prior to the August 24 start of the US Open.

“The body and mind need to recover and need to understand what happened,” Sinner told repo­rters in Ohio on Wedne­sday as he explained his scheduling.

“I’m very happy I took some time off, seeing my family and friends and very important people I have around. In the past, I made some mistakes sometimes, starting too early at times.

“I had conversations with the whole team, trying to understand what’s best. When you win big titles, they’re very special moments and then you have to leave them. Then it was back to practice to try and get as ready as possible for the US swing.”

World number two Alca­raz, meanwhile, said he has refused to let his Wimbledon finals loss to Sinner wipe the smile from his face.

Alcaraz, who was defe­ated in a Grand Slam final for the first time in his career in London last month, spent his first full day at the Cincinnati site on Wednesday and said he is ready for a reboot during the second half of the season.

“Even if I lost, I left the court proud after Wimbl­edon,” the 2023 Cincinnati finalist said. “But the goals can change during the second half of the season.

“My goal is to keep doing the right thing and improving. I want to enjoy my time on and off the court. But I also want to try and recover the number one ranking by the end of the year.”

The world number two, who joined Sinner in skipping the ATP Toronto Masters, said he spent a refreshing three weeks at home in Spain after his Wimbledon defeat.

“I took a week off, not doing anything. Then I started training at home and visiting with friends and family. Just being at home in the summer - I couldn’t believe it. I tried to make the most of my time. I wanted to come strong to Cincy.”

Published in Dawn, August 8th, 2025