Jannik Sinner set for a change of coach: farewell to Darren Cahill, Magnus Norman takes over. Return to the court at the Six Kings Slam

It would seem that the time has finally come: Darren Cahill is reportedly set to part ways with his star player, Jannik Sinner. The star coach had already hinted at the end of last season that he intended to step down from the role he had held since the summer of 2022. The Australian, who alongside coach Simone Vagnozzi has been by Sinner’s side throughout his rise up the world rankings, is set to leave the tennis courts to spend time with his family. The news was reported by *The Times* – a prestigious British newspaper. According to the newspaper, Sinner, in agreement with Vagnozzi, has already found his new super coach: the Swede Magnus Norman. A former world number two, as a coach he set up the ‘Good to Great’ academy in Sweden – where Grigor Dimitrov, a player who was ranked number three in the ATP rankings, also trained for a time. From 2013 to September 2020, Norman worked with Stan Wawrinka, who during those years won his only three majors – the Grand Slam tournaments – each time defeating the then world number 1 in the final: Rafa Nadal at the 2014 Australian Open and Novak Djokovic at the 2015 French Open and the 2016 US Open.

An Instagram story featuring his entry form for the Six Kings Slam: this is how Jannik Sinner announced his return to the tennis courts ahead of the new year. The exhibition tournament will take place between 27 and 30 December in Riyadh. Usually held in October, the postponement of the Six Kings Slam will allow the Italian to defend his title, which he has held for two years running. The tennis player’s break thus has an end date in sight, as he looks forward to his big return to a Grand Slam, which is expected to take place in January 2027 at the Australian Open.

Andrea Bernetti, Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Salento, describes the decision to play in Riyadh as ‘particularly appropriate’, because “taking part in a tournament of this kind, with a format that is significantly less stressful than the best-of-five-set marathons of a Grand Slam, represents the ideal transition” for assessing Sinner’s physical condition and preparing him as well as possible for his return to competition.

Meanwhile, it will be Alexander Zverev who will reach the top of the world tennis rankings. The German, who is already guaranteed to be number one in the rankings by the end of the year, could clinch the top spot on 2 November, should he reach the quarter-finals at the ATP 500 in Vienna – the tournament he is playing in this week.

‘I want to keep going, to have a long career. I’ve had to stop and look beyond the lines for a while, but I want to focus on the ball again. I know there’s more out there, but my place is there. On that court called tennis,” Jannik Sinner confides in an interview with *La Repubblica*. The South Tyrolean explains that he has never been idle, between Formula 1 at Monza and the Gucci fashion show in Milan, not to mention time spent on the PlayStation and reading Giorgio Faletti’s book *Io uccido*. On top of that, there are the gruelling hours of work with physiotherapists, in the gym and on court.