Jannik Sinner’s physical deterioration during his second-round match at the French Open has been labelled ‘strange’ by Tim Henman, while Mats Wilander is ‘not sure’ where the Italian goes from here.
The world No 1 entered the Parisian Grand Slam as the overwhelming favourite, having won all three clay-court Masters 1000 tournaments – a feat only matched by Rafael Nadal in 2010 – while also collecting 30 consecutive match victories.
Sinner had raced through his opening-round match against Frenchman Clement Tabur, but looked like a shadow of himself by the end of his Thursday battle.
After dominating the opening two sets during his clash against Juan Manuel Cerundolo, in addition to leading 5-1 in the third, the Italian began to feel the effects of the extreme heat and showed signs of severe cramping.
Sinner’s energy levels appeared close to empty after dropping the third set, despite taking a medical timeout, with the Argentine running away with the match 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 to complete the upset.
“It was so strange, the first two sets were some good tennis but an hour and a half,” analysed Henman, the former British No 1, during a segment on TNT Sports.
“By the time he was up 5-1 in the third, I don’t know exactly, but it can’t be much more than two hours.
“Yes, it’s hot, but it’s not that hot. That’s what’s so surprising. When he was in total control, there was a problem.
“You played one of Madrid and Rome, I think. But that is easy [to say] in hindsight. We are talking a lot about the fatigue of Sinner but the way Cerundolo stayed in rallies when he was under pressure.
“He used that moon ball to give himself time to make Sinner play again, and when he got the opportunities, he was using that lefty forehand short cross, and you can tell by Sinner’s reaction he was out on his feet.”
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Sinner and Cerundolo’s only previous meeting came at the 2023 edition of Wimbledon, where the Italian cruised to a 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 victory.
Cramps are not a new issue for the four-time Grand Slam champion, who retired at last year’s Shanghai Masters against Tallon Griekspoor.
In January, Sinner also struggled with the heat at the Australian Open and was close to retirement against Eliot Spizzirri in the third round, before finding another level to secure victory.
“Obviously, the heat just got to Jannik Sinner, even though he played at 12 o’clock, and the heat is going to be worse here in an hour or two, because at 12, it’s not that bad,” seven-time Grand Slam champion Wilander said during the TNT Sports post-match segment.
“So, it’s just a complete shock to everybody.
“I’m shocked that this happened, because he was winning easily, and then suddenly the weather takes out the biggest favourite, the guy that can maybe complete the Career Grand Slam, hasn’t lost a match in 30 matches, it just goes on and on.
“He never found a second gear; that’s something he did in Australia when it happened.
“He got cramps there, and then they had to put the roof on because the heat rule was in effect, but he got himself together again.
“He got himself back together in Rome, against Daniil Medvedev, he was really, really tired there, too.
“So I thought that he was just going to walk it off and be fully ready to play in the fifth set, but clearly, he was not ready to play again at all.
“He tried as hard as he could, but you just can’t play the way he was feeling.
“It’s really sad for Jannik Sinner; it’s sad for the tournament because he’s been playing so well. Everybody wanted to see him live at Roland Garros and see him play at that level again, and hopefully win the tournament.”
Sinner is next scheduled to play at Wimbledon, though given his early exit in Paris, he may choose to enter a warm-up event beforehand.
The Swede is unsure what the Italian needs to do in order to better prepare his body for battles in extreme heat and humidity.
“Now he’s gone, I’m not sure where he goes from here,” concluded Wilander.
“He has to address this situation, because it keeps happening a little too often.
“I don’t know if there’s anything you can do for cramps, if there is something in your diet, I have no idea.
“But something needs to happen for him, for sure.”
