Kei Nishikori returns and challenges Jannik Sinner

Kei Nishikori’s words.

Kei Nishikori after winning his first match after almost two years of stop took stock of the situation: “After eight or nine months of rehabilitation for hip surgery, I was practically ready to return but I sprained my ankle. It turned out to be a complicated problem and more complex than at first glance. This set me back for another four or five months.”

Now that the worst seems to be over, the Japanese player is aiming high: “There is one thing I hope to do: to have a chance to play against these young players like Alcaraz, Rune and Sinner at some point. That’s a big part of my motivation to try to play a few more years.”

Meanwhile, after the semifinal he reached at Wimbledon and lost in three sets to Novak Djokovic Jannik Sinner is taking a well-deserved break ahead of upcoming engagements.

But the 21-year-old San Candido-born South Tyrolean is certainly not taking a break from physical preparation, as in recent days he posted a few stories on Instagram showing him training on the courts of the Monte Carlo Country Club and also taking a shot on the streets of the Principality.

Jannik is currently sixth in the Race ranking, the one that is used to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin, and eighth in the “real” one, which takes into account the results of the last twelve months, so he is looking forward to his upcoming engagements.

Sinner will return to the court during the week of August 7-13 on the concrete in Toronto for the Canadian Open, then the following week, his 22nd birthday which is August 16, he will be in Cincinnati for another Masters 1000, the last stop on the way to the U.S. Open, the last Slam of the year, which will begin on August 28.