No. 1 Jannik Sinner falls apart, eliminated from French Open - ESPN

Formidable title favorite Jannik Sinner is out of the French Open in the second round, wasting a chance to serve for the match in the third set before falling to a 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 loss to 56th-ranked opponent Juan Manuel Cerundolo on Thursday.

Sinner was on a 30-match winning streak stretching back to February, and the odds were overwhelming that he would complete a career Grand Slam by winning the only big title missing in his tennis career — especially with two-time reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz out with an injured right wrist.

But after leading 5-1 in the third set and potentially a minute away from the locker room, Sinner sensationally lost 18 points in a row to trail 0-40 serving for the match a second time at 5-4. He bent over on the court and walked to his chair.

Sinner was attended to by the medical staff and was allowed to leave the court after saying he felt sick to have his condition assessed and blood pressure taken. When he returned, he lost three more games and the set.

As the match wore on, Sinner bent over on the clay court in apparent exhaustion multiple times and was hardly even running, resorting to drop shots and serve-and-volley tactics to try to shorten the points.

«Woke up this morning, didn't feel very well and tried to keep the points very short,» Sinner said. «Also in the beginning I was hitting very clean, very good, and then I just kind of hit the wall, and that's it.»

He later added, «I don't remember last time I felt this weak.»

Sinner attempted to cool himself with a handheld fan on changeovers and put bags of ice around his neck but ultimately dropped 18 of the last 20 games. He became the first men's No. 1 seed to lose in the second round or earlier since Andre Agassi in 2000.