Novak

The tournament director of the Canadian Open says changes need to be made to the “demanding schedule” of players after Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic pulled out of the Masters 1000 event.

Sinner, who beat Alexander Zverev to win the Wimbledon title this month, said he had withdrawn from the ATP tournament, which takes place from 2-13 August in Montreal, to prioritise his health.

Carlos Alcaraz will also be absent from the Canadian Open as he continues his recovery from a wrist injury that has kept him out since April.

“We are obviously very disappointed that Jannik and Novak won’t be joining us in Montreal this year, especially after they also withdrew from last year’s tournament in Toronto,” said the Canadian Open’s tournament director Valerie Tetreault.

“We respect their decisions and understand that, with such a demanding schedule, players’ health must remain the priority.

“That said, we believe the frequency of these last-minute withdrawals in the last few years raises a broader issue for our sport.

“Masters 1000 events are among the flagship tournaments on the tour, and fans rightfully expect to see the world’s best compete.

“We are already in discussions with the ATP to ensure this matter received serious consideration.”

The Canadian Open takes place before the Cincinnati Open, which is also a Masters 1000 event, and prior to the start of the US Open – the final Grand Slam of the year – on 30 August.

Seven of the existing nine Masters 1000 events – the sport’s highest level below the Grand Slams – are now staged over 12 days and concerns over the congested tennis calendar, which stretches across 11 months of the year for the top players, have regularly been voiced.

Britain’s Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu recently pulled out of Wimbledon on the eve of their home Grand Slam because of injury.

Draper, who withdrew with a long-term arm injury, said he felt the amount of injuries suffered by leading players is “pretty worrying”.

In September 2024, Alcaraz said: “They are going to kill us in some way.”

“We firmly believe adjustments are needed in the near future to better protect the integrity of our Masters 1000 events while remaining mindful of the realities players face,” added Tetreault.

Earlier this year, women’s world number one Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek pulled out of the Dubai Championships, a WTA 1000 event, two days before it started.

Tournament director Salah Tahlak said players who made late withdrawals from tournaments should be docked points, while Sabalenka said criticism of her was “ridiculous” and that she may not play at the tournament again.

Novak Djokovic’s pursuit for a record 25th Grand Slam title is put to an end by defending champion Jannik Sinner, whose straight-set win sets up a meeting with Alexander Zverev in the final of Wimbledon 2026.

READ MORE: Superb Sinner ends Djokovic’s latest bid for history

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Novak Djokovic beats Arthur Rinderknech in four sets to go level with Roger Federer for most men’s singles wins at SW19, as the seventh seed progresses into the fourth round.

READ MORE: Djokovic fights off Rinderknech to claim more history

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The Williams sisters, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic are back at Wimbledon. What year is it again?

The mention of those names may make it feel like we’re stuck in a timewarp – but, no, it is 2026 and some of the sport’s greatest are returning to SW19, in one way or another.

American icon Serena Williams, 44, is making a blockbuster singles comeback after four years away from the sport and also resumes her iconic doubles pairing with sister Venus, 46.

British legend Murray is back at the scene of his greatest triumphs as part of Jack Draper’s coaching team.

Djokovic, meanwhile, is only a week younger than 39-year-old Murray yet is still chasing that elusive record 25th Grand Slam title.

“It’s very special to be here – we have quite a history here. It’s nice to be back in 2026,” said Venus Williams, who has won five singles and six doubles titles at the All England Club.

As one of the highlights of the British sporting summer, Wimbledon never goes under the radar, but the presence of the old guard will help elevate the grass-court Grand Slam in a summer stacked with sporting events.

Eyeballs are inevitably trained on the men’s football World Cup, particularly with England still in the competition, while the women’s T20 cricket World Cup and British Grand Prix are also jostling for the limelight.

The appearance of the legends – along with younger superstars like Jannik Sinner, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff, plus the high-profile return of Briton Jack Draper – will ensure Wimbledon will remain at the centre of attention.

“We’re always unbelievably excited to be part of an exciting summer of sport,” Wimbledon tournament director Jamie Baker told BBC World Service.

“Every summer there are always other big events on and I think that does add to the buzz around sport in general. We do love being part of that.”

Fonseca has long been touted as the next big thing, first garnering attention when he followed in the footsteps of Sinner and Alcaraz to win the 2024 ATP Next Gen finals – the end-of-season showpiece for players under the age of 21 – before bursting into the spotlight with his victory over Rublev in Melbourne barely a month later.

He clinched his maiden ATP title on the clay courts of Buenos Aires in February 2025 before reaching the third round on his French Open debut, where he lost to Britain’s Jack Draper. And wherever he went, a carnival of Brazilian flags followed.

Twelve months after making his bow in Paris as the world number 65, he returned as the 28th seed but, while there have been flashes of promise in that period – reaching the third round at Wimbledon, a second career title at last October’s Swiss Indoors, and a quarter-final at the Monte-Carlo Masters – there was a sense he hadn’t quite lived up to his precocious talent.

No more. At the sixth time of asking, Fonseca is through to the second week of a major.

He’s gone where no teenager has gone before in beating Djokovic at a Grand Slam, and is only the sixth to do so at any ATP Tour-level event.

He is the first player since Philipp Kohlschreiber, in 2009, to knock Djokovic out before the quarter-finals at the French Open and the first to do so at any Slam since the 2024 US Open.

“Joao Fonseca has definitely announced himself now,” Annabel Croft said on BBC Radio 5 Live. “He can proudly say he has lived up to the hype, because everyone was saying he hadn’t done much since the hype.

“When all the Brazilians and South Americans were running to the courts to watch him play a couple of years ago, now we know why.”

“It took time for him to find his feet, and the crowd was going to play such an important part if he could get them going, and it literally ended in fireworks,” added former French Open semi-finalist Jo Konta on TNT Sports.

“It was exactly the situation Joao needed to bring out that level of tennis.

“He just played one of the biggest matches we’ve seen for some time.”

Instead, he must now reset and recharge to go again at Wimbledon next month.

Given he is a seven-time champion on a grass surface which younger players have struggled to master, Djokovic will always fancy his chances at the All England Club.

Djokovic can never be ruled out of becoming the oldest major men’s singles champion in the Open Era, but Father Time has been sat waiting on his shoulder for a good while.

By rights, he should probably be basking in a post-retirement glow by now.

Coaching a young compatriot away from the public glare like Andy Murray, perhaps. Doing a promotional tour for a new Netflix documentary like Rafael Nadal, maybe.

While his long-time rivals move into the next phase of their lives, Djokovic was retching at the side of a court in an attempt to summon the energy to beat a teenager.

It is a testament to his superpower that he still wants to push himself to such limits against much younger opponents.

As we have seen time and time again, Djokovic’s insatiable appetite for the sport’s biggest prizes will never diminish.

But, having reached at least the semi-finals at the past five Grand Slams, this was the clearest sign yet that the ageing process was finally catching up with him.

Djokovic looked in complete control as he moved two sets ahead, but could not maintain his level as Fonseca proved he is the real deal.

“It would be nice if it was best-of-three,” Djokovic smiled.

“I just ran out of gas, to be honest. I didn’t feel good at all on the court in the next couple of sets.”

Djokovic has always thrived in the best-of-five format of the majors, beating almost anybody who has stood in his way for the best part of two years.

The only exceptions have been Sinner, Alcaraz and the muscle injury which forced him to quit against Zverev at last year’s Australian Open.

Everyone else has not been good enough, or not had the mentality, to see veteran Djokovic off.

Novak Djokovic’s wait for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title goes on after teenage star Joao Fonseca produced a stunning fightback to win a five-set epic in the French Open third round.

The Serb was the only player left in the draw who had won a major title and was arguably the favourite to go all the way after world number one Jannik Sinner lost on Thursday.

But after winning the first two sets, Djokovic was gradually overpowered by 19-year-old Fonseca, who hit back to force a decider.

In front of a raucous crowd, Fonseca battled back from 3-1 down in the fifth set to win 4-6 4-6 6-3 7-5 7-5 after a gruelling four hours and 53 minutes.

Fonseca is the first teenager to beat the Serb at a major – a testament to the coolness he showed under pressure against one of the game’s all-time greats.

It is only the third time in 22 appearances that Djokovic has failed to reach the second week at Roland Garros.

With Sinner out and Carlos Alcaraz skipping the clay-court major with injury, Djokovic will be left wondering if his best opportunity of winning that elusive 25th Grand Slam has been wrenched from his grasp.

Fonseca, who will face either two-time finalist Casper Ruud or American 24th seed Tommy Paul in round four, is joined in the second week by fellow 19-year-old Rafael Jodar, who has emerged as a genuine title contender after winning 18 of his 21 clay-court matches in 2026.

Novak Djokovic showed signs of rust as he was forced to fight back from a set down to beat world number 83 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in four sets in the first round of the French Open.

The third seed, who is bidding for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title, had only played 11 singles matches in 2026 prior to arriving in Paris, including losing in three sets to Dino Prizmic in his only outing on clay.

The 39-year-old was visibly frustrated in the opening two sets as he struggled against the 6ft 7in (2.01m) Frenchman’s serve and ferocious forehand, conceding the first set 7-5 and later wasting nine break points in the second before converting his fourth set point.

That proved the turning point in the match, with Djokovic rattling through the third set in just 22 minutes before closing out the win 5-7 7-5 6-1 6-4.

He will face another home hope, Valentin Royer, in round two on Wednesday.

More to follow.