French Open 2023: Jannik Sinner suffers latest shock after loss to Daniel Altmaier in five-hour epic

Jannik Sinner is eliminated from the French Open after a surprise second-round loss to Daniel Altmaier in an epic five-set win 6-7 7-6 1-6 7-6 7-5.

Altmaier, ranked No. 79 in the world, stunned the eighth-seeded player in a five-hour, 26-minute match – the fifth longest match in Roland-Garros history – on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

When asked how he managed to pull off such a feat, a tearful Altmaier said: “Well, I just love the game of tennis, that’s why.

The tone was set in the first sentence. Sinner was pushed to the end but managed to win the tiebreak despite Altmaier leveling after the second set.

The Italian found his groove and dominated the third leg but saw another tie break for his German opponent in the fourth leg after missing two match points.

Altmaier seized the advantage with a crucial break in the decider, saving three break points in an epic late game before converting his fifth match point to win.

The fight was hard fought from the start, with Sinner edging through a tie break without conceding a goal and securing the opening set in just under an hour.

Altmaier forced another tie-break in the second set after Sinner missed the chance to break when the score was 3-1 and set a confident tone. But Sinner let him work, saved two of those points and then landed a backhand return to make it 6-6 before Altmaier blasted an overhead and leveled the game with his fifth set point.

In the third set, the momentum of the game seemed to shift in Sinner’s favor as the seventh seed prevailed 6-1, leaving the German task of winning two sets in a row.

Full of heart, the 24-year-old took a three-game lead in the crucial fourth set before Sinner – riddled with unforced errors – finally made it 3-1 and restored the unrelenting form he found in the second set to break back and hold Hold down the button to keep the scale at 3-3.

Altmaier delivered an epic service that resulted in seven deuces that lasted over fifteen minutes to eventually win the game and take a 4-3 lead. After a serve from Sinner to make it 4-4, the Italian scored two break points in another grueling Altmaier serve game, which the German parried and then thwarted with a powerful ace up the middle in the third.

Sinner found a way through and after Altmaier’s fierce forehand just missed a fraction across the board, the match was scheduled for Sinner, who had to serve 5:4.

But there was more drama as a determined Altmaier broke him to 5-5 after heroically saving two match points, helping to seal the deciding set after another tiring tie-break.

In a thrilling fifth set, Altmaier scored his tenth ace of the game by saving three break points before finally ending the dramatic five hour and 26 minute encounter with his fifth match point.

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