Sinner Battles Illness and Fatigue as Cerundolo Stuns French Open Favorite in Second Round

Jannik Sinner’s hopes of winning a first French Open title and completing a career Grand Slam ended in dramatic fashion on Thursday, May 28, in Paris, as illness and exhaustion contributed to a stunning 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 second-round defeat to Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo. The world number one entered Roland Garros as the clear favourite after winning clay-court titles in Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome, while defending champion Carlos Alcaraz was sidelined by injury and Novak Djokovic was still searching for peak form. But Sinner’s campaign unraveled in the heat as Cerundolo produced a resilient comeback to claim one of the biggest wins of his career. Sinner said he woke up unwell and tried to keep points short, but later felt dizzy and ran out of energy after a strong start. He admitted that he “hit the wall” after leading by two sets and 5-1 in the third, when the match seemed firmly under control. The temperature climbed above 30 degrees Celsius as Sinner looked dominant early, breaking once to take the opening set and then moving ahead by two sets to love with a powerful display. However, Cerundolo held firm, began to extend rallies, and waited for his chance as Sinner’s level dropped sharply. After the Italian took a medical timeout, saying he felt like vomiting, he returned to court but was immediately broken and lost the third set, shifting the momentum completely. The fourth set quickly slipped away as Sinner began to struggle physically, clutching his right thigh and unable to recover his earlier intensity. Cerundolo capitalized on the opportunity, playing with increasing confidence and composure as the match turned in his favor. The Argentine said he felt sympathy for Sinner, noting that the Italian had been serving to win the match before his condition worsened. Sinner praised Cerundolo’s solid finish and accepted that his opponent had deserved credit for staying calm under pressure. The defeat ended Sinner’s 30-match winning streak dating back to March and snapped the recent Grand Slam dominance shared by Sinner and Alcaraz. It also leaves the French Open without its pre-tournament favorite, opening the path for Djokovic, who now has a chance to chase a standalone 25th major title, while Alexander Zverev and several other contenders remain in the hunt. For Sinner, it was a rare and painful collapse after a long stretch of exceptional form, but he insisted the issue was not the weather and said the result was simply a case of what happened to him on the day.