Jannik Sinner’s second-round exit at this year’s French Open was perhaps the biggest shock of the tennis season so far.
Sinner lost to Juan Manuel Cerundolo in five sets, with the Argentine taking advantage of the world number one’s physical struggles to come back from 2-0 down and advance.
Many assumed the Italian’s downfall was due to the brutal heat in Paris, as he had struggled with cramping in tough conditions at the 2025 Shanghai Masters, as well as the 2026 Australian Open.
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But Sinner suggested in his press conference that the heat was not a big factor in the defeat, stating ‘it was warm, but not crazy warm’, before explaining that he had been feeling ill since the morning of his match with Cerundolo.
Days after the loss, former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski said the 24-year-old may have been dealing with a lingering virus.
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As per Tennis 365, Rusedski said of Sinner’s struggles: “It’s basically heat exhaustion, or maybe he had something with the virus he had in Australia.
“Everybody’s saying, Sinner’s got a weakness, and it’s mental. That’s nonsense. He’s not going to choke when he’s two sets to love up and 5-1 against a guy who is beating him easily.
“I heard he has a virus in Australia that was holding him back, and these viruses can linger. When you are winning matches as easily as he has been, you can cruise through matches, but the heat got him in Paris.
“That’s the only explanation that makes sense to me. Sometimes viruses take a long time to get out of your system. Look at Emma Raducanu over the last few months.
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“Jannik also said he felt sick on the morning of the match. So the only people who actually know what the truth of the matter is Jannik Sinner and his team.
“And he’s got a fantastic team. They will be looking at everything. The agent will be looking at everything. They will find a solution to this problem.
“But they also don’t want to tell us what the problem is exactly, which is also good coaching because it makes us talk, what is it? What’s happening here? What’s happening there? Because you don’t want to give any advantage to your opponents.”
Jannik Sinner will still remain world number one until after Wimbledon
Despite losing 1250 ATP points with the French Open exit, Sinner will still stay the world number one until at least after Wimbledon.
His rival, Carlos Alcaraz, will also see a big decrease of 2000 in his ATP points tally, having withdrawn from the tournament a year after winning it due to an ongoing wrist injury.
Alcaraz is also set to miss Wimbledon due to his setback, meaning he will lose another 1300 ATP points following his run to the final at the All England Club in 2025.
Even if Sinner loses in the first round of Wimbledon, he will keep his position in the top spot.
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