Sinner’s French Open campaign ends in second-round heat collapse
The Italian’s 30-match winning streak and bid for a career Grand Slam were halted by extreme conditions on the clay courts of Paris.
World number one Jannik Sinner was eliminated from the French Open in the second round on Thursday, suffering a shock defeat to 56th-ranked Juan Manuel Cerundolo. The match concluded with a 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 scoreline, marking the first time a men’s number one seed has exited the tournament in the second round or earlier since Andre Agassi in 2000.
Sinner, who had won 30 consecutive matches since February, held a commanding 5-1 lead in the third set and was serving for the match at 5-4, trailing 0-40. However, he subsequently lost 18 of the last 20 games. Visible signs of exhaustion included Sinner bending over repeatedly on the clay court and altering his tactics to use drop shots and serve-and-volley strategies to shorten points. He attempted to manage the extreme heat using a handheld fan during changeovers and bags of ice around his neck.
Medical staff attended to Sinner on court after he reported feeling sick. He was allowed to leave the court for an assessment where his blood pressure was taken. Upon his return, Sinner lost three more games to drop the third set and ultimately the match. The temperature at the start of the match was recorded at 84 degrees Fahrenheit, rising to 90 degrees Fahrenheit as play continued.
The defeat ends Sinner’s bid for a maiden French Open title and a career Grand Slam. It also means that for the first time since Novak Djokovic’s US Open win in 2023, a major crown will be claimed by a player other than Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz. Djokovic remains the only men’s player left at the French Open to have previously won a Grand Slam title.
Cerundolo was a 32-1 underdog to win the match at DraftKings Sportsbook, while Sinner was -50000. Before the tournament, Sinner was a -275 favourite to win the title, the second-shortest pre-tournament odds at a Grand Slam since at least 1990. The heat has impacted other competitors, with Casper Ruud describing himself as a "zombie" and Jakub Mensik collapsing in a previous round.
