British interest in the French Open men's singles ended on Tuesday after Cameron Norrie retired due to injury and Jacob Fearnley lost in straight sets.
British number one Norrie had never quit a top-level match in his career but decided he could not continue in his first-round match against Paraguay's Adolfo Daniel Vallejo. Norrie suffered a rib injury in the build-up to Paris and shook hands with the 71st-ranked Vallejo, 22, when trailing 7-6 (9-7) 2-0.
"It takes a big mental effort to play matches like this when you're not fully fit," said Norrie, 30. "You see Rafa [Nadal], how well he did in being able to put the pain aside. It was starting to bother me on every shot, so it was about how can I just play tennis and not think about it every shot."
Former world number eight Norrie has forged a reputation as the iron man of British tennis, possessing an endurance and work ethic rivalled by few others. But he has learned a harsh lesson after pushing himself too hard in the past few weeks. Norrie says he does not regret playing a five-set practice match against American world number six Ben Shelton in Monte Carlo a fortnight ago. However, he did acknowledge he should have retired from his match at last week's Geneva Open when an inflamed rib joint bothered him during a defeat by Argentina's Mario Navone.
Norrie will return to London on Wednesday and go for a scan to determine the extent of the issue. However, the 2022 Wimbledon semi-finalist remains confident he will be fit to start the British grass season at Queen's in a fortnight.
Fearnley, the British number four, joined Norrie and British qualifier Toby Samuel in exiting in the first round. Despite a positive start, in which he broke 56th-ranked Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the opening game, Fearnley found himself two sets behind before he was able to land another blow on the Argentine's serve. He ultimately fell 6-2 7-6 (7-0) 7-6 (9-7).
Katie Boulter and Francesca Jones are through to the second round in the women's draw, but former US Open champion Emma Raducanu suffered an early exit.