Jannik Sinner springs a scheduling surprise before Wimbledon

Jannik Sinner, the reigning Wimbledon champion who won his first title at the All England Club last year by defeating Carlos Alcaraz in the final, has made a notable change to his pre-Wimbledon preparation schedule for 2026. The Italian star has decided to skip the Halle Open, which he had used as his grass-court tune-up tournament for each of the past three years, including winning the ATP 500 title there in 2024. Sinner heads into Wimbledon with it as his sole remaining major title defence of the year, having fallen short at the Australian Open semifinals.