It’s his planned comeback Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadhfrom December 27 to 30, which is not officially confirmed.
In the video, he describes the knee that gave no warning. “I had days where I couldn’t feel anything and could play without a problem, and then I had days where I couldn’t move at all. So it’s very strange,” Sinner said.
Tonsil surgery is done later in the episode. “We’re back in Monaco and now we’re working every day to try to put on some muscle again,” he said. “I had my tonsils removed a few weeks ago and lost a lot of weight. Maybe you can see it on the face, it’s quite dry. So we did everything now to try to be stronger than before and hopefully this was the right decision.”
No dates, no diagnosis
The six-minute episode is a montage of scenes shot at different times, none of which can be precisely dated. Sinner says the tonsils were removed “a few weeks ago,” without saying when. The video also follows him to Lyon for a knee check-up (“We flew to Lyon today. Tomorrow we have some checks on the knee”), without saying when that trip took place or what the doctors found.
Nor does it establish the nature of the injury. Sinner and his team never officially named it. The only detailed description came from media reports in early October describing a small chondral tear of the lateral femoral condyle with reactive synovitis and quadriceps impingement. Tennis Majors was reporting at the time. That account was never verified.
“Long Game”
Sinner said his season had been “an incredible season until everything happened” before turning into a “very tough finish”. “The long-term game is much more important than winning right now,” he added.
His fitness coach Umberto Ferrara expressed the same idea in Italian. “Since the beginning of our partnership with Jannik, we have never worked towards an immediate goal,” he said. “We always have a medium-term and long-term vision. We’re trying to make sure that when he comes back, he’s back at the peak of his physical abilities.”
Darren Cahillwho will leave the Sinner team at the end of the season, insisted on the mental side of the rehabilitation phase. “You have to give yourself mental breaks as well,” the Australian said. “So being 25 and going and having fun and meeting some people and doing things outside of sports is really important for him as well, as long as it doesn’t hurt his knees.”
Australia in his sights
The episode ends with the Sinner looking ahead to the Australian swing. “Now I miss it so much and I’m not even close to going out on the court and playing tennis,” she said. “When I start again in Australia in front of some fans, I think it’s beautiful.”
Sinner also made a public appearance in Milan this week at an event for his sponsor Allianz. Asked about his knee, he said he is working every day following his doctors’ protocols and hopes to return to Australia or even sooner.
