Coach Darren Cahill Reveals He Wanted Jannik Sinner to Skip Exhibitions and Last Year’s Davis Cup Finals
Jannik Sinner is bidding to defend his title at the ATP Finals and will start his campaign against Felix Auger-Aliassime.
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Jannik Sinner, Darren Cahill (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ)
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Jannik Sinner is in Turin, preparing to start his title defense against Felix Auger-Aliassime. He will end his season at the ATP Finals, unlike last year, as he played the Davis Cup Finals, helping Italy win the prestigious title for the second consecutive time.
The Davis Cup Finals will kick-start on November 18, and Sinner won’t be featuring as he wants to take an extra week off to start his pre-season early. His Davis Cup withdrawal invited a tremendous amount of criticism from the Italian tennis community. Amidst criticism, Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill revealed the difficult but calculated decision behind the withdrawal.
We have two weeks to recover, train him, and make him a better player. He, like Carlos, is playing and winning a lot: the easiest thing for us as a team would be to tell him to continue, but in three or four years, he would pay the price at the absolute best moment. We constantly tell him not to play exhibitions or small tournaments that bring in a lot of money, because we need those free weeks.
Darren Cahill said (H/T: UbiTennis)
Sinner won every match he played in the Davis Cup Finals in the previous two seasons. Last year, Italy defended its title by beating the Netherlands. This year in the Finals, Italy will lock horns with Austria in the quarterfinals.
We love the Davis Cup and would like to play it as much as possible, but the truth is that last year I was the one who told him not to play the Davis Cup, but he wanted to play and defend the title. Two years in a row, however, would have represented an accumulation of effort: I want you to understand that these decisions are not easy.
Darren Cahill added
Cahill wanted to retire from coaching after this season, but has hinted that he will continue to be a part of Sinner’s team. He joked that he would continue the partnership because of the Wimbledon bet that the four-time Grand Slam champion won.
Carlos Alcaraz on whether he has convinced Jannik Sinner to change his hairstyle
Carlos Alcaraz, apart from his electrifying performance, also garners a considerable amount of attention for his hairstyle. When his brother Alvarez Alcaraz messed up his hair, Alcaraz decided to go blonde after the US Open. Ahead of the Paris Masters, he once again had a makeover, continuing with his blonde look.
But he has not yet tried to convince his arch-rival, Jannik Sinner, to change his hairstyle. During the pre-tournament press conference, Alcaraz, who spent a lot of time with the 24-year-old, was asked whether there were any conversations between them about hairstyle.
No, we made some jokes, he said he’s good right now… In the future, you know, probably I’ll stick in his mind and change. We talk sometimes, but not abt fashion…about holidays, staying home, family, football.
Alcaraz is placed in Group Jimmy Connors, while Sinner is in Group Bjorn Borg. They will face off if they reach the semifinals or in the final.
While Sinner lost in the championship clash of the 2023 ATP Finals to Novak Djokovic and beat Taylor Fritz in the final last year, the six-time Grand Slam champion has yet to progress to the final. He lost to Djokovic in the semifinal in 2023, while last year, he failed to progress to the last four.
Before Turin, Alcaraz played the Paris Masters, where his run ended in the opening round against Cameron Norrie. Sinner ended up winning the title by defeating Felix Auger-Aliassime, and the victory helped him dethrone Alcaraz from the No.1 ranking. The winner of the ATP Finals between Alcaraz and Sinner will end the season as the No.1 player.
Also read: Elena Rybakina Reveals Whether She Had Talks with WTA for Stefano Vukov Ban After CEO Photo Snub
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