Jannik Sinner knocked out, struggles in heat in second round loss to Juan Manuel Cerundolo at Roland-Garros
Andrew Dampf
Jannik Sinner, the tough favorite for the championship, was eliminated from the French Open in the second round.
Sinner was defeated by the 56th ranked Juan Manuel Cerundolo with sets of 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 as he struggled with the heat and missed the opportunity to serve in the match played on Thursday.
Sinner was on a 30-match winning streak dating back to February and was very likely to complete a career Grand Slam by winning the only major title missing from her tennis career; especially with two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz out due to a right wrist injury.
Sinner bent over repeatedly on the clay court with obvious fatigue and barely ran to shoot as the match progressed, resorting to shooting and serve-and-volley tactics to shorten points.
During the transitions, he tried to cool himself with the fan in his hand and wrapped ice packs around his neck.
The temperature, which was 29 degrees at the beginning of the match, later rose to 32 degrees.
While serving at 5-4, 0-40 in the third set of Thursday’s match, Sinner leaned onto the court and walked towards his chair. He asked for help and left the courthouse. His entire light blue outfit was soaked with sweat.
Between the third and fourth sets, Sinner received medical attention and left the court. When he returned, minerals were added to his drink, but Sinner was unable to recover.
Sinner was last defeated in the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open on February 19. He had won five championships in a row and had almost never lost a set.
On the same court, Philippe-Chatrier, Sinner lost three match points against Alcaraz in last year’s final, then lost the championship match in a fifth-set tiebreaker.
