Sinner led 6-3, 6-3, 4-0 before losing 18 of the last 20 games to fall 2-6, 3-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1.
Sinner told his physiotherapist he needed to vomit, left the court for treatment, and returned visibly debilitated with dizziness and energy loss.
Ranked 56th, Cerundolo became the lowest-ranked player to beat a world No. 1 at Roland Garros since Ramon Delgado (No. 97) defeated Pete Sampras in 1998.
Sinner's career has been marked by retirements and withdrawals due to blisters, fever, hip problems, tonsillitis, and on-court vomiting episodes dating back to 2020.
The world No. 1 said the Paris heat was not extreme and refused to blame his packed clay-court schedule for the physical failure.
For two and a half sets, Jannik Sinner's second-round match at Roland Garros against Juan Manuel Cerundolo was a formality. The world No. 1 cruised to a 6-3, 6-3 lead and broke early in the third to go up 4-0. Cerundolo, ranked 56th and lacking a clear tactical plan, seemed powerless against the Italian's heavy groundstrokes. Then, with the finish line in sight, Sinner's body shut down. He lost 18 of the final 20 games, eventually falling 2-6, 3-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 in one of the most dramatic collapses in recent Grand Slam memory.
Leading 5-1 in the third set, Sinner began to stagger. At 5-4, serving at 0-40, he leaned against the backboards in visible distress. He called chair umpire Aurelie Tourte to his side, explaining he could not continue without assistance. "Non mi sento bene, ho bisogno di vomitare" ("I don't feel well, I need to vomit"), he told his physiotherapist before retreating to the locker room. He returned after several minutes but was clearly debilitated, unable to move or generate power. The crowd watched in disbelief as the Argentine, who had never beaten a top-10 player, completed the comeback.
“I don't remember the last time I felt so weak. I tried to stay with everything I had. This was the maximum I had. I had difficulties and started to feel very dizzy, with very little energy. Everything got worse.”
The collapse in Paris is the latest entry in a long medical file that has shadowed Sinner's career. In 2020, he retired in Vienna against Andrey Rublev due to blisters on his right foot. In 2022, he withdrew at Indian Wells with an illness and days later in Miami against Francisco Cerundolo — Juan Manuel's older brother — again with blisters. Knee pain stopped him at Roland Garros that same year. In 2023, a fever forced a withdrawal in Marseille, a leg problem ended his Halle run, and he vomited on court for the first time at the China Open. A hip injury cost him Madrid and Rome in 2024, a febrile virus halted his Wimbledon campaign before a quarterfinal with Daniil Medvedev, and tonsillitis kept him out of the Paris Olympics.
The match began at noon on Court Philippe Chatrier under punishing heat, which former Italian Davis Cup players Paolo Bertolucci and Corrado Barazzutti identified as a decisive factor. "Playing in those brutal conditions is not easy and you can run into this type of problem," Bertolucci said. Barazzutti called the conditions "extreme heat" and praised Sinner's effort as "heroic." Yet Sinner himself dismissed the weather as the cause. "It was hot, but not stifling heat. I think you could play quite well. Actually, it had nothing to do with the heat. It was simply me," he said in his press conference.
The physical crisis also sparked a rules controversy. Jim Courier, commentating for TNT, accused officials of bending the rules for top players when Tourte allowed Sinner to receive treatment mid-game. "The rules are being bent for the top players. This is an absolute absurdity. It's not fair," Courier said. However, neither Sinner nor the umpire mentioned cramps — which under the rules are considered a loss of physical condition and do not permit a stoppage. Sinner reported dizziness and general malaise, which allowed the physiotherapist to intervene.
Cerundolo's victory broke a statistical barrier that had stood since 1998. He became the lowest-ranked player (No. 56) to defeat the world No. 1 at Roland Garros since Ramon Delgado, then ranked 97th, beat Pete Sampras. The Argentine acknowledged the circumstances with sportsmanship. "I was lucky, I'm sorry for Jannik. He deserves to win many Slams, I don't know what happened to him. I hope he can recover quickly," Cerundolo said after the match.
“I was lucky, I'm sorry for Jannik. He deserves to win many Slams, I don't know what happened to him. I hope he can recover quickly.”
Sinner's defeat snapped a 30-match winning streak and ended his pursuit of the one Grand Slam title that has eluded him as the top seed. He had arrived in Paris as the champion of Monte Carlo, Madrid, and Rome — an unprecedented clay-court sweep. He refused to blame his schedule for the collapse. "Even if I hadn't played Madrid or Rome, I could have had a day like this in Paris. I've had incredible results on clay, here I didn't get what I wanted," he said. His focus now shifts to recovery and the grass season. "Now I just need time to process what went wrong and also the positive aspects we can put into practice weeks before Wimbledon. We still have important tournaments ahead; there are many left to play this year."
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Jannik Sinner was leading two sets to love and 4-0 in the third before a sudden physical collapse allowed Juan Manuel Cerundolo to stage a historic comeback, reigniting concerns about the world No. 1's chronic fragility.
AI text based on reports by Corriere della Sera, Il Messaggero, europa press and other publishers. Published .