After an action-packed grass court swing, we’ve already entered into the North American hard court swing, and guess what? A lot of things have been happening recently in the tennis world. On one side, we have seen players like Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, and a few others pulling out their names from the Canadian Open, and then on the other side, there’s this buzz surrounding Venus Williams’ stunning comeback. Talking about the Italian first, Sinner had won the ATP Masters 1000 in Toronto in 2023. What really forced him to withdraw from this tournament this year?

Well, Jannik Sinner came up with a statement saying, “I’m really disappointed to be missing the National Bank Open in Toronto, especially as I have such fond memories of playing in Canada. Winning that title in Toronto two years ago was the start of a really special moment for me, but after speaking with my team, I have to prioritise my health.“ 

On the other side, Venus Williams has now become the second oldest woman to win a WTA Tour-level singles match by beating Peyton Stearns in the first round of the 2025. Other than that, there has been plenty of news coming in featuring these two superstars and several other players in the last few hours. Let’s take a glimpse at all those top stories one by one.

Jannik Sinner stirs controversy by rehiring fitness coach Umberto Ferrera

In March 2024, Jannik Sinner tested positive for the banned substance clostebol before getting cleared of deliberate wrongdoing by an independent tribunal at the first-instance hearing in August. However, later on, the tribunal ruled that Sinner bore “no fault or negligence” for the positive results and hence, he wouldn’t receive a ban. But WADA appealed to the CAS, and a hearing was set for April before both parties, i.e., WADA and Sinner’s team entered a case resolution agreement in February, which led to a three-month ban.

While sharing his thoughts on these tough times, Sinner once even admitted, “When I arrived in Australia in January, I was uncomfortable, also because it seemed to me that the other players looked at me differently. For a moment, I even thought about giving up everything.” He received plenty of criticism during that time. But how did this happen, though? As per the reports, Giacomo Naldi, who was then his physiotherapist, had used a spray purchased by Umberto Ferrera to treat a wound in his hand. The spray had that prohibited substance in it, and after that, when he treated Sinner’s feet and gave him a message, the steroid allegedly got transferred.

Following this incident, just before the 2024 US Open, Jannik Sinner claimed, “I’m not feeling that confident to continue with them.” After the departures of Ferrera and Naldi, Sinner appointed Marco Panichi and physiotherapist Ulises Badio in September 2024. Umberto Ferrera, who had been working with Jannik Sinner since 2022, defended himself in an interview with Gazetta dello Sport by saying that he had clearly communicated to Naldi both the nature of the product and the fact that it must not come in contact with Jannik Sinner for any reason. Although later on Nadali didn’t deny being told about it, however, he said he didn’t remember.

But now, months after that incident, there has been a new breaking news coming in from Italy. In a recent public statement, Jannik Sinner’s team confirmed Ferrera’s return to the team, saying, “Umberto has played an important role in Jannik’s development to date, and his return reflects a renewed focus on continuity and performance at the highest level. The decision has been made in alignment with Jannik’s management team as part of ongoing preparations for upcoming tournaments, including the Cincinnati Open and US Open.”

As per BBC’s reports, sources close to Jannik Sinner said that he feels Ferrera, who has been working with Matteo Berrettini, has learned from his mistakes. Hence, perhaps this could be one of the main reasons behind his re-appointment in the team.

Venus Williams receives a wildcard main draw entry into the Cincinnati Open

After battling with a few health issues over the past 16 months or so, Venus Williams made a comeback to competitive tennis, and well, she couldn’t have asked for a better comeback. Although Williams and Hailey Baptiste recently got knocked out of the Citi Open after facing a defeat at the hands of Taylor Townsend and Zhang Shuai in the QF, her dream is very much alive in the singles. After beating Peyton Stearns by 6-3,6-4 in the first round, she’s now all set to take on Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the next round (R16).

Interesting Fact: It was Venus Williams’ first WTA-level singles win since 2023.

Following her impressive victory against Stearns, Williams said, “This is the best result, to play a good match and win.” She’s happy to get off to a winning start, but her fans are even happier now. But why? As per the latest updates, Venus Williams and Caty McNally have now been offered a wildcard at the 2025 Cincinnati Open. This news came in less than 24 hours since her victory against Stearns, and the way she has been playing in this tournament so far, it won’t be a shocker if Williams ends up making it to the US Open next month. So, US Open dreams are still well alive, but she will perhaps need to get a ticket for that. However, other than the singles, Williams will also be seen in action at the US Open Mixed Doubles event alongside Reilly Opleka. 

But before the US Open, it will be interesting to see how far she goes at the Citi Open and then even at the Cincinnati Open, which kicks off on August 7.

Nick Kyrgios isn’t too pleased with the inclusion of Umberto Ferrera in Jannik Sinner’s team

Nick Kyrgios has been one of the strongest critics of Jannik Sinner in recent times. Previously, when Sinner had received a just three-month ban, Kyrgios said it was a “sad day for tennis“. He wrote, “Obviously Sinner’s team has done everything in their power to just go ahead and take a 3-month ban, no titles lost, no prize money lost…Fairness in tennis does not exist.” Now, after seeing Sinner bringing back Ferrera in the team, he tweeted, “He got the same doc back. We have been played ladies and gentlemen.“

Later on, he even posted, “Unfortunately, this isn’t @TennisCentel” (Tennis Centel is a parody news account on X). Other than Kyrgios, even tennis legend Paul McNamee shared his thoughts on the same. He wrote, Jannik Sinner rehiring Umberto Ferrera has to be up there as one of the most astonishing PR moves in tennis history. “You can afford to hire anyone in the world. Why, oh, why, Jannik?” he questioned the world number one.

Days after an unpleasant experience at Wimbledon, Frances Tiafoe shares his thoughts on Cameron Norrie 

Frances Tiafoe was defeated by the Brit, Cameron Norrie, in the second round of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships by 6-4,4-6,3-6,5-7. Following that defeat, Tiafoe revealed he was a bit annoyed with a few things in this match. “It [the crowd] didn’t bother me. He (Norrie) was super amped, he was saying Come on from the first game, which was definitely annoying. That probably bothered me more than the crowd.” Further on, he went on to claim that he played better because of the crowd and also stated that he doesn’t think that Norrie would have played so well if the crowd wasn’t so far behind him. Tiafoe claimed the push from the crowd did wonders for Norrie’s confidence in that match.

However, days after finishing his campaign at Wimbledon, Frances Tiafoe yet again shared a yet thoughts on the Brit. What did he say this time? In his recent interview at the Citi Open, he said, “I mean, obviously, it’s tough. I mean, you got to respect Cam as well. He made semis at the event before. He’s a top 10 guy. It’s not like I didn’t lose to anyone…It’s not like I, you know, it was a bad loss, so to speak. I mean, he’s tough on grass.”

Tiafoe and Norrie now have a H2H record of 2-2, and the Wimbledon thing is a past thing for Tiafoe at the moment as he’s now looking forward to his next challenge, i.e., Flavio Cobolli (2025 Wimbledon Quarterfinalist). He will face the Italian in the R16 of the Citi Open.

Stefanos Tsitsipas parts ways with Goran Ivanisevic

Just before the grass court swing, Stefanos Tsitsipas hired Novak Djokovic’s ex-coach, Goran Ivanisevic, in his team. Tsitsipas hasn’t tasted much success since his title triumph at the Dubai Tennis Championships. So, he hoped that Ivanisevic would help him get back to winning tracks, but that wasn’t the case. He made an early exit at the Terra Wortmann Open, and then at Wimbledon, he was forced to withdraw from his first-round match due to an injury.

Following an unfortunate ending to his Wimbledon campaign, surprisingly, his then-coach Ivanisevic came up with a statement saying that Tsitsipas says he wants to return to the top level, but he’s not doing anything. He claimed that he couldn’t see the progress. “I was shocked; I’ve never seen a more unprepared player in my life. With this knee, I’m three times fitter than him. It’s really bad,” he added.

Shortly after this, Ivanisevic claimed that Stefanos Tsitsipas wasn’t too pleased with this statement. Then, recently, in an interview with SDNA, Tsitsipas finally opened up on this issue. He took a subtle dig at the Croatian by saying, “(It’s) very difficult to have dictators and people who speak negatively” in his team. 

After that, came the news of their split! Tsitsipas shared a note on his IG story, saying, “Working with Goran Ivanisevic was a brief but intense experience and a truly valuable chapter in my journey. I’m thankful for the time, effort, and energy he dedicated to me and my team. As we are now following our separate ways, I have only respect for Goran – not just for what he’s achieved in tennis, but also for who he is a person. I wish him nothing but the very best moving forward.“ As per the latest news, his father, Apostolos, will be getting back to coaching duties in his team. What are your thoughts on these recent developments in the tennis world? Share your thoughts in the comment box.