ATP Tour

Sinner says he will convince 'second father' Cahill to stay in his corner

Jannik Sinner admits that one of his biggest challenges during the end of the 2025 season might not come with a racquet in hand, but in conversation.

As he prepares for his campaign at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, the 24-year-old says he is ready to do whatever it takes to convince coach Darren Cahill to stay by his side next season.

“We haven't talked yet, to be honest. We said we are going to finish the year, and then we might ask him for a long chat, trying to convince him,” Sinner told ATP Media with a smile on Monday. “But in any case, if he stays or not, he has been an amazing person and obviously a coach for me to hold the whole team together in the tough moments.

“He is like a second father to me, so I'm happy to have him here. It's a huge privilege to work with him. We aim for something very positive [for him to stay], and I will need a lot of hope for that.”

Sinner confirmed in January that 2025 would be the final year of his partnership with the Australian coach, who has been in his box since 2022.

This year, highlighted by titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, Sinner has tallied a 43-6 tour-level record, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. He also became just the fourth man in the Open Era to reach the final of all four major tournaments — the success of which he credits in part to Cahill.

“The results have been amazing, so I will try to make it happen for my own well being,” Sinner said when asked about convincing Cahill to stay. “So I need that. He's been important because I see the effort he puts in, working with a 24 year old kid flying all over the world and putting in a lot of effort.

“He has family, he has many, many important things to do also off the court and managing this and always putting me basically in the first place, it has been amazing and I'm very sure we can, we can make something very positive.”

Sinner will hope to bounce back quickly this week after he was forced to retire from the third round of his title defence in Shanghai. He will begin his campaign at the ATP 500 in Vienna on Wednesday, when the top seed faces Germany’s Daniel Altmaier, whom he leads 2-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

In his last appearance in Vienna in 2023, Sinner stormed to the title, winning a three-hour, six-minute thriller against Daniil Medvedev in the final.

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“I'm seeing my year as very high, winning two grand Slams and making the final in the other two biggest tournaments we have, winning Beijing recently,” Sinner said of his season. “The last week[s] were a great confidence boost and for me, most importantly, that the mental aspect is in the right way, in the right spot. I'm very happy and grateful for that. I feel good at the moment.”

Having already sealed his spot at the Nitto ATP Finals, Sinner will aim to make up ground in his bid to reclaim ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF honours. He currently trails rival Carlos Alcaraz by 2,640 points in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin.