Jannik Sinner pulls out of Paris Masters after brutal 3 am finish; Casper Ruud and Stan Wawrinka slam ATP for poor scheduling

Jannik Sinner has pulled out of the 2023 Paris Masters after his opening match saw him battle it out on the court until the wee hours of the morning on Thursday, November 2. The ATP has come under fire from both players and fans following the incident.

Jannik Sinner, aiming for his second consecutive title after Vienna, earned his career's first-ever Paris Masters win on Thursday. The fourth seed was contesting the second round after a first-round bye, and he registered a 6-7 (6), 7-5, 6-1 comeback win against America's Mackenzie McDonald.

Sinner’s win, however, came at the expense of his recovery time. He was scheduled to take the Center Court on Wednesday, November 1, in the final match of the day. However, due to the previous fixtures on the court extending beyond the anticipated time, the Italian’s match started at 12:20 am the next day.

After a grueling two hour and 37 minute long battle, Jannik Sinner confessed that he was only hoping to sleep well. The 22-year-old was scheduled to take the court again just 14 hours later, during the day session on November 2, in a third-round match against Alex de Minaur.

“It’s very late and obviously just trying to sleep and recover. Let’s see how I feel tomorrow,” the Italian said in his post-match interview.

Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill also expressed his disappointment with the match timing.

“2.45 am. Happy for the Jannik Sinner win but zero care for the players’ welfare with the Paris schedule,” the Aussie coach wrote on Instagram, adding a thumbs down and tagging the ATP tour handle.

The World No. 4 has now withdrawn from the tournament. He won’t be contesting his match against de Minaur, allowing the Aussie a walkover into the quarterfinals.

"I am sorry to announce that I am withdrawing from today's match in Bercy. I finished the match when it was almost 3 in the morning and didn't go to bed until a few hours later. I had less than 12 hours to rest and prepare for the next game," Sinner said in his statement.

"I have to make the right decision for my health and my body. The weeks ahead with the ATP Finals at home and the Davis Cup will be very important, now I focus on preparing for these important events. See you in Turin! Forza!" he added

The Italian will next be seen in action at the 2023 ATP Finals in Turin, where he will vie for his fifth title of the season after victories in Montpellier, Toronto, Beijing and Vienna.

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Casper Ruud and Stan Wawrinka rally behind Jannik Sinner; slam ATP for Paris Masters scheduling

Jannik Sinner at the 2023 Erste Bank Open in Vienna

The tennis world hasn’t taken kindly to the incident. Jannik Sinner’s colleagues, Casper Ruud and Stan Wawrinka, wrote impassioned statements on social media about the ATP’s haphazard scheduling at the Paris Masters.

Ruud denounced the governing body for being inconsiderate towards ‘one of the best players in the world.'

“Bravo ATP tour; way to help one of the best players in the world recover and be as ready as possible when he finished his previous match at 2:37 am this morning 14.5 hours to recover.. what a joke,” Casper Ruud wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Stan Wawrinka echoed the former World No. 2’s sentiments and hinted that this isn’t the first time that the ATP has disregarded players’ health.

“It’s crazy. Tournament doesn’t care and ATP just follow what the tournament will want! Always the same story …,” the three-time Grand Slam champion wrote.