World No 1 Jannik Sinner on Saturday again delayed his return to the courts, announcing his withdrawal from next week's Shanghai Masters.
The 25-year-old, who has won six titles in 2026 with an impressive record of 44 wins against three losses, has not played since his Wimbledon title in July due to a right knee injury.
"Unfortunately, I won't be able to play at the Shanghai Masters this year as I had hoped," the Italian wrote on Instagram ahead of the tournament from October 7-18.
Sinner, who withdrew in late September from the Beijing tournament where he was the defending champion, offered no further explanation.
Hope to see you back on court soon, @janniksin 🙏#RolexShanghaiMasters pic.twitter.com/3YUC4r6IYb
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 3, 2026
According to the Italian press, the five-time Grand Slam winner consulted a knee specialist in the French city of Lyon on Friday.
His prolonged absence increases the chances of his closest rival Alexander Zverev rising to the top of the ATP rankings for the first time before the season ends.
Currently, 1 370 points separate the world's top two players.
Sinner has significantly more points to defend than the German between now and the end of the season, since in 2025 he won the ATP 500 events in Beijing and Vienna, the Paris Masters 1000 and the ATP Finals in Turin, which award 1 500 points to the winner.
Zverev, 29, was far less effective at the end of last season and will therefore be able to add more points than Sinner in the year's final tournaments.
In addition to winning the first two Grand Slam titles of his career in 2026, at Roland Garros and the US Open, Zverev reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and the final at Wimbledon.