Tennis legend Boris Becker thinks that Jannik Sinner’s unexpected withdrawal from the French Open was more “mental” than “physical,” as the Italian was eliminated by Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round.
Sinner, 24, raced into a comfortable two-set lead before serving for the match in the third, seemingly coasting on a hot day in the Paris heat.
However, the World No. 1 abruptly collapsed four points from qualifying for the third round, ostensibly as a result of the extreme heat, with temperatures in the French capital surpassing thirty degrees Celsius.
Sinner lost 18 of the next 20 games and the match in five sets after being given a little rest.
After going on a 30-match winning streak, the four-time major winner eventually acknowledged that his sudden collapse was due to illness more than the heat.
However, Becker believes that Sinner’s mental issues, not his illness, were the reason he failed to cross the finish line at Roland Garros.
According to Boris Becker, Jannik Sinner’s collapse during the French Open was caused by a mental health issue.
“For me, this can’t be physical; it has to be mental,” Becker stated. What’s happening inside of him is unknown to us. To what extent does he put himself under pressure? He claimed to have had trouble sleeping. It’s difficult to fall asleep when you’re anxious and overthinking.
“This is the biggest sensation at Grand Slam tournaments in recent years,” Becker continued. “Sinner was the clear favorite to avenge his dramatic French Open final defeat to Carlos Alcaraz last year, which was an all-time classic, with the Spaniard pulling out of the tournament due to a wrist injury.” Jannik Sinner was seen as untouchable because of his spectacular victories in Rome, Madrid, and Monte Carlo. He served twice for the match today, but he was still unable to end it.His main issue is that.
He frequently encounters physical—and possibly even mental—difficulties, particularly when games at the majors go the entire distance or things get emotional.
I was asked earlier this week who Sinner’s main rival in Paris would be. The weather was my response! We witnessed that once more today.
Becker attributed Sinner’s weariness to the quantity of games he had previously played this year, even if the weather seemed to drain his stamina as the game went on.
You only need to do the math: from the beginning of March, Jannik has been traveling nonstop. He continued to win while playing in California, Florida, Monte Carlo, Madrid, and Rome. However, this man eventually becomes exhausted. “He’s human and just had a bad day today.” I’m not sure if the heat was the cause. After two hours of playing, he abruptly begins to have cramping. I think it all originated from his head, and I can’t believe it. I appreciated that he said “It was on me” without offering any justifications.
Before taking a two-set lead over Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round, Sinner appeared to be having trouble with the heat in Paris.
He was simply hollow. The one match too many was this one. Anyone can experience that. He had been playing as though he were from an other planet for the past few weeks, constantly on and having to respond to everyone’s inquiries. Today’s game was just too much for him.
If Sinner hadn’t been playing in the midst of an extraordinary heatwave in Paris and had instead been hitting it around in 20 degrees rather than 32, he might have won 6-3, 6-2, and 5-1. A player who had won 30 straight games and five consecutive tournaments might have won.
Rather, he struck the wall after losing 15 consecutive games in the third to fall behind 40-0 on serve at 5-4.
Sinner frequently melts when things become heated, as Daily Mail Sport reported yesterday. He has never prevailed in a four-hour Grand Slam match. He was here for three hours and thirty-six minutes.
He was behind 3-1 in the third set at the Australian Open in January, but the heat regulation, which halted play, gave him the opportunity to recover his composure.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Jim Courier stated on the Tennis Channel, “This is unfair for Cerundolo.” “This is not an injury.” He ought to be punished for this. It’s obviously cramping.
For the elite players, the rules are being broken. You cannot insist that you remove him from the courtroom in order to check his vital signs. This is complete nonsense.
Due of cramps, players are not permitted to leave the court. Sinner would have received a time violation if Tourte had started the countdown clock and he had not served in time.
Novak Djokovic now has a clear route to winning his 25th Grand Slam championship. Since the US Open in 2023, this Slam will be the first to feature neither Carlos Alcaraz nor Sinner in the championship match. That one was also won by Djokovic.
