A fan was dragged off the court by security after approaching Jannik Sinner at the Six Kings Slam. The world No. 2 returned to action in Riyadh and sealed a straightforward 6-2 6-3 victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas in his opening match on Wednesday.
Sinner was still on the court following his post-match interview when he was confronted by a boy who appeared to be asking for his jacket. They spoke briefly before security intervened, pulling him away.
The Italian could be seen packing his bags in the background while presenters Prakash Amritraj, Feliciano Lopez and Laura Robson discussed Sinner’s level.
The fan in question walked up to Sinner and shook his hand before repeatedly gesturing to his jacket. Their conversation wasn’t picked up by microphones, but the four-time Major winner seemed confused as the boy tapped Sinner’s jacket before pointing to himself.
A security guard rushed over, grabbing the boy and dragging him away from Sinner so the world No. 2 could leave the court.
Sinner had been making his return to competition after retiring from the recent Shanghai Masters. The 24-year-old was defending the title in Shanghai, but he was one of many players who struggled in the brutally hot and humid conditions.
The 2024 champion could barely walk by the time he was forced to call it quits while suffering severe cramps in the third set of his third-round match against Tallon Griekspoor.
Arriving in Riyadh for the Six Kings Slam, where he is also the defending champion, Sinner explained: “The cramps in Shanghai? I think they were due to a mental factor.
“I talked with my team – from that point of view, I wasn’t perfect, but now everything’s fine. The mistake was mine, the heat and humidity got me down. You learn from these things – cramps can happen, and I was one of many to suffer from them.”
But Sinner was straight back to it at the Six Kings Slam, breezing past Tsitsipas to advance to the semi-finals, where he will face Novak Djokovic.
“Of course, we know each other now a little bit better, played already many times. With time, we become better players and know each other’s game a little bit more so I knew a little bit tactically how to prepare for the match,” the world No. 2 later said.
“But generally I just tried to stay quite aggressive, especially on the return games. I felt like I was serving very well in the important moments. This is a very interesting situation we have to deal with here on the court because it’s quite bouncy.”