"We have to adapt ourselves" - Jannik Sinner assesses court conditions at Cincinnati Open after Carlos Alcaraz laments ‘faster’ and ’bouncier’ court

Jannik Sinner assessed the court conditions at the Cincinnati Open after defeating Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals. Carlos Alcaraz also recently discussed the 'faster' and 'bouncer' court conditions at the Lindner Family Tennis Center after his defeat to Gael Monfils in the second round of the Masters 1000 event.

Sinner kicked off his North American hardcourt swing at the Canadian Open where he was ousted by Rublev in the quarterfinals.

The World No. 1 then entered the Cincinnati Open and received a bye in the opening round by virtue of being the top seed. He comfortably ousted Alex Michelsen in the second round and received a walkover in the third against Jordan Thompson, who withdrew due to a rib injury.

Sinner then came back from a set down to defeat Rublev 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 and reach the semifinals of the Masters 1000 event.

During a conversation with Tennis Channel after the match, the Italian opined on the faster courts in Cincinnati. He said that players need to adapt to the conditions and though it's usually tough to play in Cincinnati due to bouncier courts, this year the struggle was caused by faster conditions. The World No. 1 also added how the balls shrank as the match went on, making it harder to control the shots.

"I feel like we as players, we have to adapt ourselves in the best possible way here," Sinner said (at 3:20).

"Usually, it's very tough to play, I felt like also last year was different because maybe it was a bit more bouncier, this year it's a bit more faster. The balls they don't blow up, they get a bit smaller, so it's very tough to control the ball," he added.

The Italian further explained how players adapting to the different court conditions would make tennis more interesting.

"But we have to adapt ourselves. I feel like sometimes it's good for tennis that you see the potential difference between courts and how players adapt themselves," Jannik Sinner said.

Sinner's comments came shortly after Carlos Alcaraz spoke on how different the conditions were on Center Court compared to others in Cincinnati.

After his defeat to Gael Monfils in the second round, the Spaniard explained how playing on the Center Court felt like playing a different sport altogether due to the higher bounce and the faster nature of it.

"I've been practicing really well in this tournament. The previous days I was feeling great, hitting the ball clear, moving well. Probably I felt like it was another sport playing on the center court than the other courts. The balls were faster on the Center Court, bounce much, much more than other courts," Alcaraz said.

Jannik Sinner will meet Alexander Zverev in the semifinals of the 2024 Cincinnati Open

Jannik Sinner (Image Source: Getty)

Jannik Sinner will play Alexander Zverev in the semifinals of the 2024 Cincinnati Masters, in what will be the sixth meeting between the two men. The German has produced some impressive performances so far this season, winning 52 out of 67 matches.

Zverev booked his place in the semifinals in Cincinnati after ousting 12th seed Ben Shelton 3-6, 7-6(3), 7-5 in a close encounter. The German and Jannik Sinner will face one another for the sixth time, with the former leading their head-to-head 4-1.

Whoever out of the two wins, will take on either 15th seed Holger Rune or Frances Tiafoe in the final of the Cincinnati Open.