Sinner’s Comeback in Doubt, Rune Withdraws & Alcaraz Sparks Injury Fears | 5 Setter

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Mike (1:23)

What's up, Chuckers? Producer Mike here. This is your Served Five Setter for a very lovely November 13th, 2026, five stories and 10 minutes or less. This week, there was BTS of a doctor's visit going viral, another top player, Team ShakeUp, plus a tale of the tape in Turin, a Stockholm return cut short and a blockbuster deal for Big Ben. But first, if you're new here, make sure to hit subscribe on YouTube and follow us on your favorite podcast platform. We really appreciate the love and support. With that said, let's get into it.

For set number one, a player who hasn't hit a ball on tour since July still makes big headlines. On Wednesday, Jannik Sinner released episode three of his YouTube series, Jannik Sinner Unfiltered, calling the episode Health and Recovery. In the episode, we see Sinner head to the hospital for a knee scan. Check out this clip.

Jannik Sinner (2:19)

We are back in Monaco and we are working every day now, trying to build up muscle again. I had tonsils removed some weeks ago and I lost a lot of weight. Maybe you can see off the face, it's quite dry.

And yeah, so we did everything now, trying to get back even stronger than before. And hopefully this was the right decision.

Mike (2:45)

Now from the video, we learned Sinner head tonsil surgery some weeks ago, and the weight loss from that procedure might be a contributing factor to a slower recovery from his knee injury. They also speak about Australia being the goal for a return to competition. But if the mid January start Australian Open is the stated goal in this episode, what does that mean for the organizers of the Six Kings Slam exhibition, which is scheduled to start December 27th? Sinner originally withdrew from the event when it was scheduled for late October. But after the event was postponed to late December, he was added back to some of the marketing material. In the AP reports, that is where Sinner plans to return. Do we think that we'll see him at the Six Kings Slam in roughly six weeks? Who knows? But in the same episode, Sinner himself says this.

Jannik Sinner (3:31)

No, it makes it even more special because I miss it so much already now and I'm not even close to get on court and play tennis.

Mike (3:40)

Now on to set number two and the WTAFinals are underway in Indian Wells. And boy, oh boy, did we have a treat on Wednesday. Mirra Andreeva trailed Aryna Sabalenka early in the first set for one in the world number two looked like she was rolling. However, our favorite teenage diva buckled down and won 12 straight points to level it out before going on to capture the first set and then baggling Sabalenka in the second set to win 6-4, 6-love in just 62 minutes, winning the last 11 games of the match and 45 of the last 55 points. The victory put the 2-0 Andreeva through to the semifinals, making the 19-year-old the youngest player to reach the final four since 2009 As for Sabalenka, she heads into Friday one-on-one and needs to win her next match to advance. After the match, the media caught up with Aryna, asking her what she would tell herself if she was her coach. Take a listen.

Aryna Sabalenka (4:43)

No, like in this match, you mean on the court? Well, right now for the next matches. Just keep going. You're doing okay.