Sinner Advances After Schwartzman Retires

Jannik Sinner advanced to the third round at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters on Wednesday when Diego Schwartzman was forced to retire with a shoulder injury.

The Italian, who reached the quarter-finals in Monte-Carlo last year, produced a ruthless performance in his first clay-court appearance of the season. He overpowered the Argentine with his flat groundstrokes and committed just six unforced errors before Schwartzman was forced to retire with Sinner leading 6-0, 3-1 after 38 minutes.

“I could tell from the beggining he was struggling a lot,” Sinner said. “On the left side with the pain. I wish him the best and hopefully it is nothing serious.”

Sinner is competing at the Principality at a career-high No. 8 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after advancing to his second ATP Masters 1000 final in Miami earlier this month. The 21-year-old will next face 10th seed Hubert Hurkacz.

“I haven’t had loads of time to prepare, but I am happy to play here and play in front of Italian fans,” Sinner said. “Just enjoying every moment and trying my best and having a great attitude every time I step onto the court. I feel not so bad on clay.”

Schwartzman and Sinner were teaming as doubles partners this week. After winning their opening match, the Argentine-Italian pair lost in the second round against Fabrice Martin and Andreas Mies.