MILAN -- Jannik Sinner will not defend his China Open title, further delaying his return from injury as he says his knee is not quite ready.
The top-ranked Sinner has not played since beating Alexander Zverev in the Wimbledon final. He withdrew from the US Open because of a right knee injury.
And on Friday, the Italian player officially pulled out of the China Open, which starts Wednesday in Beijing.
"I am very sorry to announce that I won't be able to play in Beijing this year," Sinner said in a video on social media. "My knee is not there where I would like to be and I am not ready to compete yet, but I will do everything possible to be there on court as soon as I can.
"I am very disappointed that I cannot defend it this year, but I'm very happy to come back next year. I wish everyone a very good tournament, and I see you all very soon on court again."
Sinner did not say when he could potentially be back on tour. There is a Masters 1000 event in Shanghai starting Oct. 7 and an ATP 500 tournament in Vienna, Austria, starting Oct. 26.