Richard Pagliaro | Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Photo credit: Jon Buckle/ROLEX
Jannik Sinner is putting a positive spin on his stunning Roland Garros exit.
While the world No. 1 is disappointed by his early exit in Paris, he’s excited to have extra time to prepare for his Wimbledon title defense.
In a seismic shocker, a cramping Sinner succumbed to searing heat, piercing cramping and Juan Manuel Cerundolo 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 in a massive Roland Garros second-round upset on May 28th.
A month later, Sinner opens his Wimbledon title defense at peace with the state of body and mind.
In a new interview with Vogue, Sinner said he’s tried to take positives from that Roland Garros loss—his earliest Grand Slam exit since the 2023 French Open second round—and put time and effort into his Wimbledon preparation.
“I took one week off and spent some time with my friends and family, which was really important for me,” Sinner told Vogue.” And then after that, we went straight back to practice, because now there’s a big run coming up—Wimbledon, of course, but we also did a lot of work for the US swing that comes after.
“We don’t have a lot of time to practice for that usually. I’m always trying to see the positives in situations, and the positive part of going out early of Roland-Garros—even though I would have of course liked to go deeper—is getting some extra time. We try to maximize every day, so there have been a lot of long practice sessions, and I’m very happy with the shape and mental state I’m in right now.”
In a stunning collapse, Sinner build a commanding 6-3, 6-2, 5-1 lead only to spiral to the blistering heat and stinging pressure in a free-fall that saw Cerundolo win 18 of the final 20 games in Paris.
“I struggled, starting to feel very dizzy. Very low of energy,” said Sinner, who twice served for the match in the third set. “Tried to serve it out, but didn’t have a lot of energy. Fourth set, I let it go a little bit trying to have a bit more energy in the fifth. Very important game the first one. Couldn’t hold. Then it went a bit downwards.
“But, yeah, woke up this morning, didn’t feel very well and tried to keep the points very short. Also in the beginning I was hitting very clean, very good, and then I just kind of hit the wall, and that’s it.”
Though he’s been burned by heat and cramping issues at both the Australian Open and Roland Garros, the good news for Sinner is that while Wimbledon qualifiers are enduring blistering 90-degree heat this week, the forecast calls for scorching conditions to subside and mild temperatures for the opening week of Wimbledon main draw play.
The four-time Grand Slam champion has not played a grass-court singles match since dethroning arch-rival Carlos Alcaraz in the 2025 Wimbledon final. Sinner said navigating the first week as efficiently as possible is essential for his maiden Wimbledon title defense.
“I approach it in the same way. I always say we don’t defend, we always try to go for it, and hopefully we can do that,” Sinner said. “I know it’s a long tournament. How I start is going to be very important.
“I haven’t played any matches on grass, so the first match—or the first few matches—are going to be difficult. But if I’m able to get through them, I know the confidence on grass can come back and the good feelings as well. At the moment, we’re just trying to get a good rhythm on grass, and then we’ll see how the tournament goes.”
Sinner, who looked depleted in Paris, said he’s fit for London.
“I feel good. We did a lot of work these past few weeks, so physically I’m in a very good place,” Sinner told Vogue. “I’ve played a lot over the last few months, so a good training block was very much needed for my body to get stronger again, and I’ve recovered well.
“But the most important thing for me is to be in a good spot mentally, and I’m very happy to be here in London. Hopefully I can compete in the best possible way.”
Prior to Alexander Zverev’s five-set win over Flavio Cobolli to capture his maiden major crown at Roland Garros, Sinner and Alcaraz had combined to collect nine consecutive major championships.
The pair squared off in an Open Era record three straight major finals last year and Sinner said he’s looking forward to renewing his major rivalry with Alcaraz.
“As I’ve said many times before, tennis needs Carlos,” Sinner said. “I wish him a speedy recovery and I know that he has a great team around him that will be supportive and help him on the way back.”