Often cited by defending champion Vincenzo Nibali as a rider to watch on the Tour de France, Thibaut Pinot made an early impact by beating all the pre-race favourites in the opening time trial on Saturday.
The overall standings remained unchanged at the top with Thomas leading defending champion Froome by one minute 39 seconds and Dutchman Tom Dumoulin by 1:50.
New coronavirus cases have been rising at an alarming rate in France since the beginning of the month, casting a menacing shadow over the re-scheduled 107th edition of the race.
Norway's Kristoff outsprinted Danish world champion Mads Pedersen after 156 km around Nice.
Stage eight winner Nans Peters had long crossed the line when fellow Frenchman Thibaut Pinot's ordeal ended after the Groupama-FDJ rider, highly fancied to become the first local winner of the race in 35 years, had been dropped in the second ascent of the 141-km trek through the Pyrenees.
France's Sports Minister has given no assurance of the likelihood of the Tour de France being held this year.
Cycling teams are gearing up for the Tour de France to be held in August rather than the usual July, after French President Emmanuel Macron said big public events would be halted until mid-July as the country fights the COVID-19 pandemic. Marc Madiot, president of the French cycling league and director of the Groupama-FDJ cycling team, said Macron's comments, which included extending measures to slow the coronavirus outbreak, paved the way for the Tour to be held in August.
Slovakian Peter Sagan elbowed Mark Cavendish off balance as the Briton was trying to force his way between him and the safety barrier, and Cavendish was sent crashing heavily.
Muntari said he had complained that parts of the crowd, including a group of children, had hurled racist insults at him from the start of his Italian team's game at Cagliari in Serie A on Sunday.
Chris Froome is poised to win a second Tour de France title after being forced to hang on desperately as Colombian Nairo Quintana attacked relentlessly in Saturday's penultimate stage up the iconic Alpe d'Huez.
The seventh stage of the Tour de France burst into life at the finish on Friday as Marcel Kittel claimed his third victory in this year's edition, pipping Edvald Boasson Hagen to the line in the final sprint.
Chris Froome got a brutal reminder of the unpredictable nature of the Tour de France when he crashed to the ground in Sunday's second stage, recovering to finish with torn shorts as German Marcel Kittel powered to victory at the end of a huge sprint.
Mark Cavendish claimed his 30th Tour de France victory and fourth in this year's race when he left sprint rival Marcel Kittel trailing at the end of the 14th stage on Saturday.
Briton Chris Froome stunned his passive rivals to snatch the overall leader's yellow jersey in the Tour de France when he won the eighth stage with a lightning attack on the final descent on Saturday.
Chris Froome seized early control of the Tour de France, the 2013 champion snatching the yellow jersey after a crash-marred third stage won by Spain's Joaquim Rodriguez on Monday.
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