00:00Alcaraz wins Cincinnati Open after ailing Sinner retires in final.
00:05Carlos Alcaraz won the Cincinnati Open after top seed Jannik Sinner retired as he was feeling
00:10unwell on Monday, raising concerns about the Italian's fitness just days before he is due
00:14to begin the defense of his US Open title. The Spanish second seed snapped the world
00:19number one's 26-match winning streak on hard courts when his ailing rival signaled he could
00:23no longer continue while trailing 5-0 in the first set of the final.
00:27This is not the way that I want to win trophies, I just have to say sorry, I can understand how
00:32you must feel now, Alcaraz told Sinner during the presentation ceremony after capturing his
00:36third master's 1,000 crown of the season following his success in Monte Carlo and Rome.
00:42As I said many times, you are a true champion and I am sure from these situations, you are going to
00:47come back even stronger, as you always do. That's what true champions do. Sinner had been bidding to
00:53become the first man since Roger Federer in 2015 to win back-to-back Cincinnati titles, but he
00:59looked uncomfortable early on in the sweltering conditions. He called it quits after 23 minutes
01:04of play. I'm super, super sorry to disappoint you, Sinner told the crowd. Yesterday, I didn't feel
01:11great. I thought that I would improve during the night, but it came up worse. I tried to come out,
01:17tried to make it at least a small match, but I couldn't handle more, so I'm very sorry.
01:21It was also unclear whether the Italian would be fit enough to partner Katerina Siniakova in the
01:26revamped mixed doubles event at Flushing Meadows which is due to take place on Tuesday and Wednesday.
01:32Singles action at the hardcourt major begins on Sunday. Monday's clash have been expected to be
01:37a dress rehearsal ahead of a potential final showdown between the world's two best players
01:42in New York, with the duo having faced off in the title match at the last two majors.
01:46Alcaraz came from two sets down and saved three championship points to triumph at Roland Garros,
01:52while Sinner emerged victorious at Wimbledon. Monday's result extended Alcaraz's head-to-head
01:57record over Sinner to 9-5, including a 6-2 edge on hardcourts.
