Sinner’s French Open dream ends in five-set loss to Cerundolo

Jannik Sinner’s bid to complete the Career Grand Slam collapsed in the Paris heat, as Juan Manuel Cerundolo clawed back from two sets down and a 5-1 deficit to beat the world No. 1 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 at Roland Garros.

Sinner had the match in control on Court Philippe-Chatrier, building a 6-3, 6-2, 5-1 lead before his movement sharply deteriorated in the 32C conditions. As his physical problems mounted, Cerundolo took command of the rallies, levelled the contest at two sets apiece and finished the job with a dominant deciding set. The defeat ended Sinner’s 30-match winning streak, which stretched back to Indian Wells.

The loss carried consequences far beyond one second-round upset. Sinner had arrived in Paris with a chance to become only the seventh man in the Open Era to complete the Career Grand Slam, after winning the Australian Open in 2024 and 2025, the US Open in 2024 and Wimbledon in 2025. Instead, the French Open remains the missing piece in his collection, and his pursuit of that place in the sport’s history will have to wait another year.

The setback also interrupted a season that had underlined Sinner’s hold on the top of the game. The ATP Tour said he had captured five consecutive ATP Masters 1000 titles in 2026, in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Madrid and Rome, and had compiled an 18-0 record on clay this year before arriving in Paris. For a player who had looked increasingly untouchable, the collapse in the final three sets raised immediate questions about whether this was an isolated physical breakdown or a warning sign at the sport’s most demanding stage.

Cerundolo, ranked world No. 56, turned the match into the biggest win of his career. The Argentine had already beaten Jacob Fearnley 6-2, 7-6 (0), 7-6 (7) in the first round and arrived in the second round after winning the Bordeaux Challenger. His first appearance in the third round of a major now comes with the added weight of having dismantled the men’s top seed, and with it altered the shape of the Roland Garros draw.