The tennis world witnessed one of the most stunning upsets in Grand Slam history as world number one and tournament favorite Jannik Sinner crashed out of the 2026 French Open in the second round. Competing on a sweltering Thursday afternoon on Court Philippe-Chatrier, the top-seeded Italian suffered a severe physical collapse against Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo. Sinner appeared completely in control of the match, comfortably sweeping the opening two sets 6-3, 6-2, and building a seemingly insurmountable 5-1 lead in the third set. He even served for the match twice, standing just four points away from a routine victory.
However, as temperatures on the clay court soared past 30 degrees Celsius, the momentum shifted dramatically. Sinner began struggling visibly with severe fatigue, cramping, and dizziness, later admitting he woke up feeling unwell and suffered a sudden depletion of energy. Exploiting his opponent’s physical distress, the 56th-ranked Cerundolo fought back tenaciously, breaking Sinner’s serve to win six consecutive games and claim the third set 7-5. With the top seed barely able to move or maintain long rallies, Cerundolo ruthlessly dominated the remainder of the match, taking the final two sets 6-1, 6-1 to complete an unforgettable 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 comeback.
The shocking defeat shattered Sinner’s remarkable 30-match winning streak, which included sweeping all three clay-court Masters titles earlier in the season. In his post-match press conference, a heavily depleted Sinner noted that he simply hit a wall and lacked the physical strength to navigate the crisis. Meanwhile, Cerundolo celebrated the biggest milestone of his career, becoming the first player since 2000 to knock out the men’s top seed at Roland Garros prior to the third round. With Sinner out of the tournament and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz absent due to an injury, the men’s singles draw has been blown completely wide open.
