Jannik Sinner blames burnout after shock French Open exit

The world number one, who arrived as one of the clear favourites for the title, suffered a dramatic 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 defeat to Argentina's Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round at Roland Garros. Sinner had been targeting a first French Open crown and a career Grand Slam, especially with rival Carlos Alcaraz sidelined through injury.

However, after a dominant clay swing that saw him lift titles at the Monte Carlo Masters, Madrid and Rome, Sinner arrived in Paris short of energy and struggled to recover after falling ill during the tournament.

"In general, many things came together, I played a lot, and I didn't have a lot of time to recover," Sinner explained in a press conference.

He added: "This morning I didn't sleep well. When I woke up, I was struggling a bit, but this can happen. Usually, in Grand Slams, you have a couple of days where you don't feel perfect. That was today."

Sinner also insisted conditions were not the main issue despite high temperatures in Paris, pointing instead to fatigue and his demanding schedule.

"It's tough to accept, of course, because of the position I've been in and everything considered, but now I have a lot of time to recover," he said.

Looking ahead, Sinner hinted he may skip grass-court warm-up events before Wimbledon, preferring rest over match practice.

"I won't play any tournament on grass before (Wimbledon), most likely," he said. "I really need some time off to recover completely, also mentally, and then be ready to go again."

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