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Jannik Sinner's Wimbledon semifinal prep rattled by skipped practice, but injury update eases fears
Jannik Sinner had injured his elbow during his Round of 16 win over Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov
Jannik Sinner’s coach, Darren Cahill, has provided a key update on the Italian star’s elbow injury following his Wimbledon Round of 16 win over Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov — a match that ended prematurely with Dimitrov retiring due to a pectoral injury. Sinner had won the first two sets 6-3, 7-5, and the third set was tied at 2-2 before the Bulgarian withdrew.
During the match, Sinner took a hard fall onto his right elbow, which caused visible discomfort, especially while serving. Although he pushed through the pain to book a spot in the quarterfinals against American Ben Shelton, concerns grew after he canceled his planned practice session the next morning and went for an MRI.
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The missed training session raised eyebrows and sparked speculation among fans about whether the World No. 1 would be fit for the Grand Slam quarterfinal clash.
However, in an interview with ESPN, Cahill downplayed concerns and said there was "nothing out of the ordinary" about Sinner's condition.
"He had [the MRI] earlier today and he can’t take a day off, so he wanted to touch the ball," Cahill explained. "So [coach] Simone [Vagnozzi] and I just fed him a few balls out of the basket."
Cahill — who has coached legends like Lleyton Hewitt and Andre Agassi — added that indoor hitting sessions are fairly common during Wimbledon.
“It’s not a bad thing sometimes. The more you play on grass with the uneven bounces, the more your timing can go off. Agassi used to do it all the time. We’ve done that for a couple of years, so it wasn’t unusual.”
Alcaraz Cruises into Final Four; Fritz Battles Through
World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz became the first player to reach the semifinals after dispatching Britain’s Cameron Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 in clinical fashion.
"To be able to play another semi-final here at Wimbledon is really special," Alcaraz said. "I’m really happy with the level I played today against a really difficult player like Cam."
Alcaraz will next face American No. 5 Taylor Fritz, who survived a major scare in his quarterfinal match against Karen Khachanov. Despite a strong start, Fritz had to recover from a foot issue and a third-set slump to eventually seal the match 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4).
"The match was going so well for me for two sets. I've never had a match just flip so quickly," Fritz said. "I'm really happy with how I came back in the fourth set and got it done."
Meanwhile, the winner of the quarterfinal clash between Sinner and Shelton will go on to face either 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic or fellow Italian Flavio Cobolli in the semifinals.
