'I need some time off' - Jannik Sinner issues emotional statement after being knocked out of French Open

Jannik Sinner says he "needs some time off" after suffering a shock second-round exit at the French Open.

The 24-year-old, who was the overwhelming favourite to win at Roland-Garros after Carlos Alcaraz pulled out with a wrist injury, was on a 30-match winning streak coming into the match against Argentina's Juan Manuel Cerundolo.

At one stage, he was 6-3 6-2 5-1 ahead and serving for the match but after Courtside mics captured Sinner saying he felt dizzy and nauseous, the Italian proceeded to lose the set 7-5 after receiving treatment.

It was a real struggle for the world number one, who went on to suffer a 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 defeat.

"I had no energy today. That can happen. Nobody is a robot," Sinner said after the match. "I woke up this morning, didn't feel very well and tried to keep points very short. In the beginning I was hitting very clean, very good, and then I just hit a wall.

"I started feeling dizzy. Very low on energy. I tried to serve it out but I didn't have a lot of energy."

"It was warm, but not crazy warm," added Sinner, who struggled with the heat at this year's Australian Open. "I feel like it was quite OK to play. It was nothing against the heat, nothing against the weather. It was just me today, but it happens."

On Thursday night, Sinner issued a statement on social media to confirm his intentions.

"It was not my day today," he wrote on X. "We've had an incredible year so far but now I need some time off. Thank you all for the amazing support and congrats to @jmcerundolo on a solid match. See you soon. Au revoir, Paris."

Having completed the 'Career Golden Masters' with his Italian Open win over Casper Ruud, it looks like Sinner will take a well-deserved break ahead of Wimbledon next month.

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According to the director of the Italian Open, who spoke to Eurosport, Sinner's physical condition has depleted after consistent long tournaments. In fact, he even contemplated stepping back from his home event earlier this month.

Quoting a conversation with fellow Italian player Matteo Berrettini, Angelo Binaghi said that Sinner 'couldn't' carry on in Italy but ultimately found an extra ten percent of energy in the bottom of his kit bag.

"Berrettini told me: ‘Yes, yes, look, it’s impossible for him to come, he can’t do it anymore.’ So I was resigned,” he said.

"We were seriously worried about his physical condition. We saw problems both at the end of the match with Rublev and especially in the match with Medvedev."

Binaghi added: "I think that in this last match Jannik showed energy that perhaps he didn’t even know he had, but this is what great champions do, who are not normal people and who have a suffering threshold, a limit that is different from what we normal people have.”