French Open: Jannik Sinner extends slam streak as Taylor Fritz crashes out early

World No 1 Sinner was in dominant form as he recorded a 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 triumph over a spirited opponent, with his win seeing him join a special club of players who have won 15 straight matches in Grand Slam events.

Sinner won the US Open last September and backed it up with victory at the Australian Open in January.

Now he has recorded a 15th straight win in Grand Slams, an achievement that has only been matched by only Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.

Sinner paid tribute to Nadal after his win against Rinderknech, as he was taken to the plaque unveiled in Nadal's honour during the ceremony to celebrate the 14-time Grand Slam champion on Sunday.

"What can I say? The player we all know, but the person he was and still is," said Sinner. "He never changed with success and this (plaque) is the least this court can do. The way he was with the ball kids and everyone at the tournaments. He's a role model for all of us."

Nadal spoke about Sinner's impact at his press conference on Sunday, as the Spaniard gave his full backing to the Italian following his recent three-month ban following a failed doping test.

"He's had an impressive year and a half. He was very solid in the game, very focused, but he was also able to maintain emotional stability, which was very difficult," said Nadal.

"He showed great maturity. On the other hand, I've said it several times: I'm totally convinced that Jannik never wanted to cheat or do anything illicit.

"So I don't like to see other players talking about it, without having the information. The people who have it, throughout the whole process, are the ones who have to make the decisions and judge the facts."

Meanwhile, Taylor Fritz became the biggest casualty of the French Open so far on Monday, with the fourth seed beaten in his opening-round match at Roland Garros.

World No 4 Fritz never came close to discovering his best tennis out on Court Simonne-Mathieu, with the US Open runner-up falling 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 to Daniel Altmaier.

It is a second top-10 win at the French Open for World No 66 Altmaier, with the German having stunned eighth seed Jannik Sinner in the second round back in 2023.

However, it is undoubtedly a disappointing loss for American ace Fritz, who has struggled with injury and consistency across the clay swing.

It is the first time since the 2022 US Open that he has lost in the opening round of a Grand Slam, and his ATP ranking will now suffer as a result. Fritz's 2024 French Open campaign was the best of his career, with the US star reaching the second week at Roland Garros for the first time.

Rankings-wise, the big winner looks set to be World No 5 and Roland Garros fifth seed Jack Draper, who will not start his campaign until Tuesday. The Brit is provisionally fourth in the live rankings, and could become just the fourth British man to crack the top four, following Andy Murray, Tim Henman, and Greg Rusedski.

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