Jannik Sinner springs a scheduling surprise before Wimbledon

TL;DR

Jannik Sinner, the defending Wimbledon champion, has made a surprise adjustment to his preparation for this year's tournament after a semifinal exit at the Australian Open.

Key points

Jannik Sinner is the defending Wimbledon champion.
He won his first Wimbledon title last year against Carlos Alcaraz.
Sinner reached the semifinals at the Australian Open this year.

Jannik SinnerWimbledonAustralian OpenCarlos Alcaraz

Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images

After falling short in the semifinals of the Australian Open, Jannik Sinner now has only one major title defence left on his calendar for the year: Wimbledon.

Sinner lifted his first Wimbledon trophy last year by beating Carlos Alcaraz in the final. The victory came after a tough loss to Alcaraz earlier that season at Roland Garros, where Sinner missed three match points.

Looking ahead to this summer’s event at the All England Club, Sinner has already made a significant adjustment to his build-up plans.

Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Jannik Sinner skips Halle Open ahead of 2026 Wimbledon title defence

In each of the past three years, Jannik Sinner chose to play the Halle Open over Queen’s as his final tune-up before Wimbledon.

He captured the grass-court ATP 500 title in 2024, then followed it up with a quarter-final appearance at SW19.

Sinner exited Halle in the second round last year but went on to lift his first Wimbledon trophy later that summer. This time around, though, he hasn’t been included on the entry list for the 2026 event.

As a result, it appears Sinner will head straight to Wimbledon without playing any grass-court warm-ups beforehand. The decision mirrors what we often saw from Novak Djokovic earlier in his career when he also skipped pre-Wimbledon events and still found success.

Jannik Sinner’s journey at the 2025 Wimbledon championships

Sinner got off to a strong start at the 2025 Wimbledon championships, moving past Luca Nardi, Aleksandar Vukic and Pedro Martinez without dropping a set.

But his tournament nearly ended in the fourth round against Grigor Dimitrov, who took a two-set lead before an injury changed the match.

Q&A

What title does Jannik Sinner defend at Wimbledon?

Jannik Sinner defends his Wimbledon title, which he won last year by defeating Carlos Alcaraz.

How did Jannik Sinner perform at the Australian Open?

Jannik Sinner reached the semifinals at the Australian Open but did not advance to the final.

What changes has Sinner made to his preparation for Wimbledon?

Jannik Sinner has made a significant adjustment to his build-up plans for Wimbledon, although specific details of the changes have not been disclosed.