World number one Jannik Sinner suffered a stunning collapse at Roland Garros, crashing out in the second round after squandering a commanding lead against Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo.
Sinner appeared to be cruising towards victory, holding a two-set advantage and leading 5-1 in the third, but his tolerance for the heat evaporated within sight of the finish line.
The Italian sensationally lost 18 points in a row, finding himself 0-40 down while serving for the match at 5-4.
Distressed Sinner sat on the advertising hoardings, prompting umpire Aurelie Tourte to intervene. Medical staff attended to him, and he was permitted to leave the court for assessment, including having his blood pressure taken, after stating he felt sick.
This move is considered unusual, as heat-related cramp is typically deemed a loss of condition, not qualifying for a medical timeout.
Despite returning, Sinner won only two more games, ultimately succumbing to a 3-6 2-6 7-5 6-1 6-1 defeat. His unexpected exit blows the men’s tournament wide open, leaving 39-year-old Novak Djokovic as the sole remaining player to have claimed a Grand Slam title. Furthermore, it ensures that for the first time since Djokovic’s US Open triumph in 2023, a major crown will be lifted by someone other than Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz.
Sinner did not take a timeout but the assessment took several minutes, and former British number one Tim Henman said on TNT Sports: “The umpire shouldn’t be getting off her chair. It’s not her responsibility, that’s the player’s responsibility.
“I don’t see why he should get the benefit of going into an air-conditioned room.”
Sinner then took a permitted break to change his clothes at the end of the set and appeared in slightly better shape but his movement around the court was still extremely laboured and Cerundolo cruised through the fourth set.
Sinner tried to recover, blowing a fan onto his face and drinking from what appeared to be a can of cola, but there was no way back.
The world number one went into the tournament as the biggest favourite here since Rafael Nadal having not lost a match since February, winning 30 in a row, and with big rival Alcaraz sidelined through injury.
But the pale-skinned Italian’s vulnerability in the heat is well known and the unseasonal Paris heatwave looked to be potentially his toughest opponent.
The 24-year-old was saved by the Australian Open’s heat policy in the third round this January after cramping against Eliot Spizzirri just before the threshold was reached for play to be suspended and the roof closed.
But there was no chance of such an occurrence here with conditions not severe enough for Roland Garros’ policy to come into play.
Sinner, who only needs this title to complete his career Grand Slam, had played at night in his first match but here was scheduled first on Court Philippe Chatrier at midday, with temperatures again soaring over 30C and increasing as the contest went on.
He took an aggressive approach from the start, trying to avoid long rallies against seasoned clay-courter Cerundolo, but he could not prevent the Argentinian claiming the result of his life.
The heat has taken its toll on other players, with Casper Ruud saying he felt like a “zombie” during his first-round match while Czech Jakub Mensik collapsed at the end of a five-set battle on Wednesday.
