PARIS/WASHINGTON, May 29, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)
On a day that the French Open men’s draw blew up following the stunning five-set loss by World No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner to Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round after he got to within four points of a straight-set victory on Thursday, turning the entire tournament wide open, one player who is ready to capitalize on a world of opportunity is none other than Raphael Collignon of Belgium.
The 24-year-old Belgian, who is ranked 62nd after reaching a career-high No. 56 in February, pulled off a nifty upset of Ben Shelton. Collignon humbled the No. 5 seed from the United States, 6-4, 7-5, 6-4, in two hours and one minute on Court Suzanne-Lenglen – the same show court that earlier in the day 17-year-old French teenage rising star Moise Kouame gutted out a four-hour, 56-minute five-set victory over No. 71 Adolfo Daniel Vallejo of Paraguay.
Under the lights at Stade Roland-Garros, Collignon garnered his fifth tour-level win on clay this season and it was his second Top-10 win after he denied Alex de Minaur during Belgium’s Davis Cup upset of Australia in Sydney last year. Thanks to the Thursday victories by Cerundolo and Collignon, No. 4 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada is the only Top-8 seed left in the top half of the men’s draw.
RAPAHEL COLLIGNON 🇧🇪#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/kE9CIw6Jzx
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 28, 2026
During his on-court interview after denying Shelton from reaching the French Open third round for a the third-straight year, Collignon fought back tears as he spoke.
“It was incredible. It’s very emotional because being Belgian, I used to come here to Roland-Garros quite regularly,” he said.
“So, just being able to play on this court is a dream. And then to win in front of my loved ones, in front of my family, it’s incredible.”
Tears of joy 🥹#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/xWALGjFy7v
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 28, 2026
Zizou Bergs, Collignon’s doubles partner and Belgian Davis Cup teammate, was among those cheering him on and offering support. Also, there was former World No. 38 Steve Darcis, now Collignon’s coach and Belgium’s Davis Cup captain, keeping things positive.
As it happened, Collignon won all but six first-serve points, connecting of 43 of 49 opportunities – an 88 percent efficiency – and he faced no break points. Collignon hit 31 winners, made just 13 unforced errors and outpointed Shelton 93-75.
By the conclusion, Collignon became the first Belgian to earn a Top-5 win at a major since Darcis upset Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon 13 years ago, and it was Shelton’s first loss at a Grand Slam to a player outside the Top-30 since the US Open in 2023.
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“Yeah, when you have a coach like Steve, it’s easy, you just have to listen,” said Collignon, who is 27-8 in all competitions this season and was a finalist at the ATP Challenger Tour 175 event in Bordeaux, France, a tournament won by Cerundolo. “We prepared well for the match. He watched quite a few of Ben’s matches. He gave me some pointers, but above all, it was about trying to focus on myself, on my serve, trying to be aggressive, not letting him dictate the game too much. I think I managed to do that well today. So, I’m very happy and very proud of myself.”
In the third round on Saturday, Collignon will face 104th-ranked Italian Matteo Arnaldi, who upset former World No. 3 and 2021 Roland-Garros finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece, now ranked 79th, 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-3, 6-2, in three hours and 17 minutes on Court 14 – the last match to be completed on a busy Day 5 at Roland-Garros, in which there were a total of seven men’s matches that went five sets. It’s the second-straight year that Tsitsipas has lost in the second round at the French Open.
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Thursday’s Roland-Garros results
Friday’s Roland-Garros order of play
By the numbers
Following the five-set upset of World No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner:
• It ended Sinner’s 30-match winning streak, which began at the start of the ATP Masters 1000 at Indian Wells in March.
• Sinner became the first men’s No. 1 seed to lose before the third round at Roland-Garros since Andre Agassi in 2000.
• It snapped a streak of nine-straight majors won by Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz.
• Novak Djokovic, 39, is the only major champion remaining in the draw.
• Matteo Berrettini, ranked No. 105, is the only player left in the upper half of the draw who has reached a major final.
“Quotable …”
“It’s been a journey. … Many injuries. Many bad moments. I missed this tournament so much.
“I’m so glad I’m back here. I’m playing really high-level tennis. I’m enjoying my time on court. I have an unbelievable team that supports me. I’m happy for this win. But the tournament is not done yet.”
– Unseeded Matteo Berrettini of Italy, ranked No. 105, who upset No. 22 seed Arthur Rinderknech of France, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, in two hours and 17 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier Thursday evening, during his on-court interview afterward.
Hear from Berrettini after his win tonight 🎙️#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/0LyP7TSLOu
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 28, 2026
