World No.1 tennis star Jannik Sinner has broken his silence on the spectator who tried to steal from his bag at the US Open.
Sinner was posing for selfies with fans courtside after his last-16 win over Alexander Bublik when a man leant over and tried to unzip his bag without him noticing.
Luckily, a US Open security guard realised what the thief was trying to do and swatted the man’s hand away before he could take anything out.
Sinner has now opened up about the incident, admitting that both his wallet and phone were in the bag that the thief was attempting to unzip.
Sinner: My phone and wallet were in the bag
‘I haven’t experienced [this before],’ the Italian said after his 6-1 6-4 6-2 victory over Lorenzo Musetti in the US Open quarter-finals.
‘You know, it was… I checked straight away if he took something, because you know, I don’t have only rackets there.
‘I have my phone. I have my wallet. But, I feel like the security is doing a great job.
‘Especially on court, there are lots of security. I believe especially [in] the big tournaments, they [do an] amazing job to [make us] feel safe.
‘So even [when] new things happen like this, they [do a] great job. It’s all fine.’
The man was asked to leave the US Open grounds after the incident, although it wasn’t much of a punishment given play had concluded for the day.
Officials from the United States Tennis Association (USTA) have confirmed no further action will be action, believing a warning is sufficient enough.
Who does Sinner face next at the US Open?
Following his win over Musetti, Sinner next faces Canadian 25th-seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the US Open semi-finals.
The winner of that match will then face either Carlos Alcaraz or Novak Djokovic in the final at Flushing Meadows.
Speaking ahead of his clash with Auger-Aliassime, defending US Open champion Sinner said: ‘He’s had some big wins, so [it’s a] big confidence boost for him.
‘We’ll see what’s going to happen. You know, I feel like anything can happen. From my point of view, I always try to look at myself, and I’m very happy to be in the semis of a Grand Slam again.
‘It’s going to be a very, very difficult match for both of us. So, yeah, definitely different, because [at a] Grand Slam, the energy and everything is going to be different. It’s going to be very interesting to see.’