Jannik Sinner Fails to Complete the Puzzle at Roland Garros 2026

World number one Jannik Sinner (Instagram/@janniksin).

JAKARTA - World number one Jannik Sinner failed to take advantage of the golden opportunity he had to win Roland Garros 2026 when his rival Carlos Alcaraz was absent. He failed in the second round of the tournament after losing to Juan Manuel Cerundolo from Argentina.

Sinner was knocked out dramatically in the second round of the clay event after playing a five-set match with a score of 6-3, 6-2, 5-7, 1-6, and 1-6 on Thursday, May 28, 2026, WIB night. This is a surprising defeat because he is the main favorite to win the event.

"Jannik Sinner actually deserved to win this match and I don't know what happened after that. I'm sad for him and hope he recovers soon," said Cerundolo, quoted from the ATP official website.

Sinner was actually on the verge of victory after leading 5-1 in the third set. However, the 24-year-old Italian began to cramp and had difficulty maintaining his physical condition until he failed to close the match on two different occasions.

Sinner even asked for a medical timeout when he was 0-40 in the 10th game of the third set. After that moment, his performance continued to decline, while Cerundolo was able to take over the course of the match by winning 18 of the last 20 games.

This victory is the biggest surprise of the 2026 season so far. Cerundolo, who is currently ranked 56th in the world, is also the first tennis player to eliminate the top seed at Roland Garros before the third round since Karol Kucera did so in 2000.

"It's a tough situation for him. I couldn't even win more than three games in a set before he had cramps. So, maybe I'm a little lucky," said Cerundolo.

This result also makes Sinner fail to complete the Career Grand Slam in his career. Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam title he has never won from the four Grand Slams in the ATP Tour calendar.

Sinner actually came to Paris with the mission of hunting down the status as the seventh tennis player in the Open Era (since 1968) who was able to complete the Career Grand Slam or manage to win all four Grand Slams.

The tennis player who has collected four Grand Slams (two at the Australian Open and one each at the US Open and Wimbledon) came to France with an extraordinary capital of 30 consecutive victories after sweeping five ATP Masters 1000 titles throughout the 2026 season.

Sinner had a similar problem when facing Eliot Spizzirri in the third round at the Australian Open earlier this year. However, the hot weather rules made the Rod Laver Arena roof closed so he was able to recover his condition and secure a four-set victory.

However, in his latest match at Roland Garros, he did not have the opportunity to rise as he did at Melbourne Park.

Despite having physical problems and limited movement, Sinner still showed his quality of hitting by releasing a number of spectacular forehands. On the other hand, Cerundolo managed to take advantage of the situation to turn the tide and eventually win.