Sinner holds off Gasquet's late charge at Roland Garros

Jannik Sinner remained perfect at the majors in 2024 with a dominant-turned-dramatic victory Wednesday night at Roland Garros. The reigning Australian Open champion scored a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 result against home favourite Richard Gasquet, keeping his opponent and the festive French crowd at bay with an assured performance until the match nearly flipped in the final set.

Sinner's display for the bulk of the two-hour, 14-minute match served to diminish any lingering doubts about his recent hip injury. But he began to show signs of physical strain in the third set, walking gingerly in between points in the face of a late surge from Gasquet. 

The second-seeded Italian has progressed through to the third round without dropping a set in Paris and now awaits Pavel Kotov, who beat Stan Wawrinka 7-6(5), 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(5) to close the evening's play.

While rain cancelled much of Wednesday's play on the outer courts, there was no delay for Sinner under the Court Philippe-Chatrier roof. In command for the bulk of the match, Sinner faced just two break points, according to Infosys Stats. He erased Gasquet's first opportunity to consolidate a break at love late in the opening set, but could not prevent the Frenchman from breaking to level the third set at 2-2.

Photo by Peter Staples/ATP Tour

Despite his apparent physical struggles at that crucial juncture, Sinner regrouped to break back immediately and ultimately saw out the victory — but not before Gasquet fought through four deuces to hold and force the Italian to serve out the match.

Sinner is now four wins from clinching a debut atop the PIF ATP Rankings. If he reaches the final, or if Novak Djokovic fails to reach the final, Sinner will become the first Italian World No. 1 following the tournament.

The 37-year-old Gasquet, playing in his 21st Roland Garros, was seeking his first win against a Top 2 opponent at a major. His best result at his home Grand Slam is a quarter-final showing in 2016.