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Sinner collapses in Paris
Jannik Sinner’s French Open run ended in the second round on Thursday when he collapsed physically in the blazing Paris heat and lost to Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Sinner had led 5-1 in the third set before losing 18 consecutive points, and Cerundolo won 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1.
The Times of India said temperatures rose to 32 degrees Celsius, and Sinner asked the chair umpire for assistance after feeling dizzy and nauseous before leaving the court for medical treatment.
After returning with ice packs around his neck and minerals added to his drinks, Sinner still lost 18 consecutive points as Cerundolo extended rallies and forced the exhausted top seed into drop shots and risky serve-and-volley tactics.
Quotes and the wider field
After the match, Sinner said, “I struggled and started to feel very dizzy. Very low of energy,” and he added, “I woke up this morning and didn’t feel very well.”
Sinner also told reporters, “Congrats to him. I don’t want to take anything away from him. He played a very solid match, especially in the end. That’s the sport.”
The BBC framed the result as a draw that “blew wide open,” pointing to the absence of Carlos Alcaraz and the way Sinner “wilted in the heat” against Cerundolo.
The BBC also said Novak Djokovic turned 39 last week and described Friday’s Chatrier day session against Joao Fonseca, with temperatures set to reach 34C, as a “litmus test.”
Djokovic, Zverev, and stakes
With Sinner eliminated and Alcaraz absent, the BBC said the men’s draw has been blown open, leaving a larger number of players feeling their chances of lifting the Coupe des Mousquetaires have increased.
“- Published Not too long ago there were accusations that the men's singles at Grand Slams were becoming a predictable two-horse race”
The BBC described Djokovic as the “old man” back again, noting he has reached at least the semi-finals in each of the past five majors and has received a boost in his quest for an elusive standalone record 25th Grand Slam.
The BBC said Alexander Zverev, the German second seed, could meet Djokovic in the semi-finals and questioned whether the prospect of finally shedding his unwanted tag would become too much of a burden to bear.
In the same BBC framing, Zverev was positioned as the favourite on paper with “no Sinner, no Alcaraz,” while the BBC also pointed to Casper Ruud and Rafael Jodar in the draw, including Jodar’s third-round match against American Alex Michelsen.
