World No. 1 Jannik Sinner withdraws from Paris Masters following Six Kings Slam victory
The Italian, who pocketed over six million dollars in prize money from the exhibition event, cited illness ahead of the final Masters 1000 tournament of 2024.
World No. 1 Jannik Sinner announced on Tuesday that he is forced to withdraw from the Rolex Paris Masters, the final ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the 2024 season, citing a lingering illness.
“I’m very disappointed to tell you that I’m not able to play here at this tournament,” the would-be top seed revealed in a video posted to the tournament’s official social media. “I came very early here to prepare and felt sick. I’m having a virus at the moment, which is going to pass in the next two-three days. So, body-wise, I’m not ready to compete.
“I’m very, very sorry for that, but I’ll see you guys all next year. Hopefully, it’ll also be a great year without me.”
Winner of this year's Australian Open and US Open, Sinner is coming off a busy fall swing that includes a runner-up finish at the China Open, a win at the Rolex Shanghai Masters over Novak Djokovic, and an extremely lucrative appearance at the inaugural Six Kings Slam exhibition. The 23-year-old Italian took home over six million dollars (USD) in both appearance and prize money for winning the six-man event in Riyadh, and ignited discussion from a subsequent interview during which he claimed he doesn’t “play for money.”
"Of course, it's a nice prize and everything,” Sinner explained, “but for me, I went there because there were possibly the six best players in the world. And then you can measure yourself with them.
“It was also a nice event for me. It was the first time I went to Riyadh and it was nice. When you come back as a winner, for me, it was more that, ‘Okay, I played the matches in the right way and this hopefully can improve me as a player also for the future.’”
Sinner, who has already clinched a berth at the ATP Finals in Turin, was replaced in the draw by lucky loser Arthur Cazaux. The 22-year-old Frenchman was extra lucky to inherit the two-time major champ’s first-round bye, and will open against either compatriot Corentin Moutet or American Ben Shelton, who reached the finals of the Swiss Indoors Basel last week.