Sinner says Melbourne is the goal, but he will come back without the Australian who coached him to two titles there

Jannik Sinner has set his sights on the Australian Open, the tournament where his grand slam career began, as the place to end six months on the sidelines.

Speaking in Milan on Tuesday, local time, the 25-year-old Italian said the goal was to get to Australia, and perhaps to play a few tournaments before it. He did not name them.

He has not played since winning Wimbledon in July, the fifth grand slam title of his career, because of a knee injury. He has not detailed the injury publicly. In Milan he said his team had first set a return date that turned out to be impossible, so they chose a slower path.

“I miss playing tennis,” he said. He also warned that hurrying could make things worse, and made the point that the medical calls are not his to make: “I’m a tennis player, not a doctor.”

What has he lost while he has been out?

The top ranking, for a start. Zverev has taken over as world No 1, ending a long run at the summit for Sinner. The Italian, now world No 2, will return as the hunter rather than the hunted.

He has also lost the coach most associated with his rise. Darren Cahill, the former Australian player who grew up in Adelaide, parted ways with Sinner last week after four years. Cahill was in his box when Sinner won his first grand slam title in Melbourne in 2024 and when he defended it in 2025. Magnus Norman, the Swede who coached Stan Wawrinka to three grand slam titles, has joined long-time coach Simone Vagnozzi.

What does it mean for the Australian Open?

Sinner’s return would restore one of the two biggest drawcards in the men’s game to the first grand slam of 2027. He and Carlos Alcaraz have shared most of the sport’s major titles in recent seasons, and an Australian Open without either would have been a harder sell for organisers and broadcasters.

It also means the tournament’s most recent two-time champion arrives with almost no match play. Players returning from long injury layoffs often look for lead-in events in early January, and Sinner has said only that he might play some, without naming them.

Why is he being so careful?

Sinner framed the decision as a long-term one: if his team hurried, he said, the knee might end up worse. His team’s earlier, faster plan was dropped for that reason, he said.