Patrick Mouratoglou Slams Critics Claiming Jannik Sinner Faked His Struggles During Shanghai Masters

Jannik Sinner‘s title defense in Shanghai ended in a disaster, for scorching conditions led to him struggling with cramps during his third-round match against Tallon Griekspoor. The pain was so much that he couldn’t walk properly and limped off the court with the help of a physio.

But Serena Williams‘ former coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, came across accusations against Sinner that he faked the struggles while dealing with the cramps. Mouratoglou took to his Instagram to rubbish such claims.

To explain Sinner’s cramps, there is only one word: humidity. [Taylor] Fritz had the same problem; we saw Novak Djokovic throw up two times. It’s not the first time Jannik has cramps. He had cramps against Carlos [Alcaraz] in Roland-Garros, but this was tension. Until it happens to you, there is no reason to change anything. Once it happened, his team will probably organize differently the next time he’s going to play in such conditions.

Griekspoor now holds a 1-3 head-to-head record over Sinner. In his first-ever Shanghai Masters fourth round, 27th seed Griekspoor suffered a three-set defeat to qualifier Valentin Vacherot.

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Sinner clinched the Shanghai Masters title last year by beating Djokovic, whom he was projected to meet in the semifinals. The Italian’s defeat means he is now more than 1000 points behind first-ranked Alcaraz, who has 11,340 points on the live rankings. Alcaraz decided not to play the Shanghai Masters because of an ankle injury.

Guido Monaco urged Jannik Sinner to work more strategically if he ever deals with cramps

Italian former tennis player Guido Monaco blamed the ATP calendar for Jannik Sinner‘s mid-match retirement. He also thinks one rule affects players from taking medical timeouts.

According to the current ATP rules, players can receive treatment during the changeovers or set breaks if they are cramping. They, however, cannot take medical timeouts if they deal with cramps. Monaco implied that Sinner needs to fake a bit so that he can take a medical timeout while cramping.

It is entirely possible that after playing a tournament a few days earlier and two consecutive matches in another tournament with little time to recover, such a situation could arise in this climate. Perhaps in the future, he could act more strategically, requesting a medical timeout at the first signs and justifying this with a small contracture. Indeed, according to the rules, cramps are not considered an injury and cannot be treated.

Guido Monaco said (H/T: The Tennis Gazette)

Sinner will next be featuring in the second edition of the Six Kings Slam and will bid to defend his title. He took home the $6 million prize money by defeating Carlos Alcaraz.

After the Six Kings Slam, Sinner’s next destination will be Vienna for an ATP 500 event. The four-time Grand Slam champion clinched the Vienna Open in 2023 by defeating Daniil Medvedev, but skipped the tournament last year.

Following the Vienna Open, it will be the time for the last Masters 1000 of the season- the Paris Masters. Sinner has never progressed beyond the third round in the tournament. He skipped the event last year.

In Vienna, Sinner will be bidding to win his fourth title of the season after his victories at the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the China Open. The 24-year-old clinched his second title in Beijing by beating Learner Tien. It was also his first ATP 500 title win since his Halle Open victory last year.

Now there’s only one title left for Sinner to defend – the ATP Finals. Except for the Australian Open, he failed to defend the six titles (excluding the ATP Finals) he clinched last year.

Also read: Alexander Zverev Makes Explosive Statements About his Form and Health After Shanghai Exit

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