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Jannik Sinner arrives at Roland Garros under an injury cloud, having pulled out of his Mutua Madrid Open quarterfinal and withdrawing entirely from his home tournament at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia—both times citing a right hip issue.

Off the court for nearly a month, the No. 2 seed will face a familiar opponent in Christopher Eubanks: Sinner won their only previous meeting in straight sets at the 2022 US Open.

A fan favorite and part-time Tennis Channel analyst, can Eubanks turn around a subpar season and channel the form that took him to No. 29 in the world less then 12 months ago, and score the biggest upset of his career?

Get to know the 6’7” American ahead of his Monday match with Sinner:

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The Basics:

  • DOB: May 5, 1996
  • Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia
  • Height: 6’7” (2.01 m)
  • Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
  • Career-high rank: No. 29
  • Coach: Ruan Roelofse

The Bio

A Georgia Tech alum, Eubanks was a two-time All-American playing college tennis for the Yellow Jackets, but initially struggled to translate that from onto the ATP tour after turning pro in 2017.

In fact, his first big hits came not on the tennis court but behind the desk, analyzing the game’s biggest names for Tennis Channel starting in the spring of 2022.

But the 27-year-old never lost sight of his own career goals, and after finishing that year just outside the Top 100, he began charging up the rankings in in 2023. Starting with a first Grand Slam main-draw win at the Australian Open, he finally made the leap at the Miami Open with a run to the quarterfinals.

“Growing up, I was never the best junior,” he admitted in an emotional mixed zone interview after clinching his Top 100 debut. “I said I wanted to play pro, didn’t know if I really meant it. I knew I had the game to compete with Top 100 guys, but I didn’t know if I had the consistency to actually win enough matches to get there.”

Unburdened by that expectation, Eubanks went on a tear that summer, winning his first ATP title on grass in Mallorca and stunning Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to the Wimbledon quarterfinals.

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This Week

Still ranked inside the Top 50, Eubanks pulled off a thrilling victory over Dan Evans in Miami but has otherwise struggled to replicate his 2023 form this season, heading into Paris on a six-match losing streak and a combined 4-12 record on the season His most recent outing was an encouraging three-setter in at the Gonet Geneva Open, but still ended in defeat to Tallon Greikspoor.

The biggest questions coming into the match will be about Sinner: how healthy is the reigning Australian Open champion as he bids not only for a second straight major victory but also an ascent to No. 1 in the ATP rankings? It will be up to Eubanks, a lanky all-courter, to test Sinner’s movement on what has historically been his least comfortable surface and draw positive energy from the Roland Garros crowd if the underdog hopes to pull off the upset.

Eubanks will take on Sinner first up on Court Suzanne-Lenglen on Monday.