It was a U.S. Open first for Jannik Sinner — and not in a good way.
Sinner said he was aware that a fan tried getting into his bag after he dominated Alexander Bublik in the fourth round Monday night.
“No, I haven’t experienced (anything like that),” Sinner said Wednesday night after he dismissed fellow Italian Lorenzo Mussetti in straight sets.
“You know it was …. I checked straight away if he took something because I don’t have only rackets there. I have my phone, my wallet, but, you know, the security is doing a great job. Especially on court, there’s lots of security and I believe especially in big tournaments (they do) an amazing job to make us feel safe. New things happen like this that makes (what they’re doing) a great job.”
As Sinner walked over to the crowd to hand one of the clamoring fans a towel, another reached around him to seemingly try and get into his tennis bag.
A security guard noticed and intervened with the fan then putting his hands up.
A USTA official told the Daily Mail that they opted not to punish the fan, despite some on social media calling for his banishment from the Flushing Meadows grounds.
The incident has gotten far less attention than Polish CEO Piotr Szczerek being caught on video snatching a hat away from a young kid after Kamil Majchrzak’s upset of Karen Khachanov last week.
The situation involving Sinner is just about the only thing that has gone wrong these two weeks for the defending US Open champ.
Sinner has lost one set — against No. 27 seed Denis Shapovalov in the third round — on his way to the semifinals.
Sinner claimed Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year, and lost a heartbreaking final to Carlos Alcaraz at the French Open.
The 24-year-old will face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semifinals Friday, with Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic dueling on the other side of the draw.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
