Source : ABC NEWS
Defending champion Coco Gauff has been dramatically dethroned at the French Open by Anastasia Potapova, while world number one Aryna Sabalenka cut through the chaos to dismiss Daria Kasatkina and end the Australian campaign in the third round.
After a brutal two days for fancied players at the clay-court grand slam, during which Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic crashed out, Gauff was unable to find her best level and lost 4-6, 7-6 (7/1), 6-4 to fall by the wayside.
“I don’t know, I had chances,” Gauff said.
“Just trying to capitalise more on these good points that I was hitting and not quite finishing … that was the difference, she was able to finish points and I wasn’t.
“It’s one thing to lose, but today I competed, I fought my hardest, but I don’t think I played the way I wanted to in the crucial moments.”
Gauff’s premature exit leaves four-time champion Iga Świątek and Sabalenka as the top contenders to win the Suzanne Lenglen Cup, while Potapova will be viewed as the dark horse having dished out a massive upset.
“I’m cramping a little bit, but it’s OK, it’s all good. I don’t have any words now, I’m extremely happy,” Potapova said in her on-court interview as she clutched her right arm after two hours and 37 minutes of big hitting.
“The fight we could show … Coco’s such a champion and I respect her so much. I’m unbelievably proud of myself, that I stayed there, and that I was fighting until the last point.”
Coco Gauff joined the likes of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic making surprisingly early exits. (Getty Images: Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images)
Sabalenka earlier beat Kasatkina 6-0, 7-5 on a sun-drenched Court Suzanne Lenglen for her 100th win as the top-ranked woman, making her only the ninth player to achieve the feat since the inception of the WTA rankings.
She joined Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Chris Evert, Serena Williams, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Justine Henin and Swiatek in the honours list.
“I’ve got goosebumps,” said Sabalenka, who struggled with dips in form and crippling service issues a few years ago.
“It means the world to me and I’m just happy that in the tough moments I stayed tough. I was fighting and never gave up and that is what it has brought me.”
Kasatkina was the last Australian in the singles draw, after Alex de Minaur’s third-round loss to Jakub Menšík despite winning the first set 6-0.
After Juan Manuel Cerundolo stunned Sinner, fellow Italian Matteo Berrettini will have a chance for revenge after a dramatic 7-6(7/3), 5-7, 6-7(4/7), 6-4, 7-6(15/13) win over Francisco Comesana in five hours and 13 minutes.
Cerundolo came through his own epic, with a 6-4, 6-7(7/9), 7-6(7/4), 6-7(4/7), 7-6(10/8) win over Martin Landaluce in a match that was two minutes short of six hours, while his brother Francisco lost 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3 to American Zachary Svajda.
Despite Gauff’s departure, the American tilt continued on the women’s side with world number 19 Madison Keys showing too much experience to see off ninth-ranked 19-year-old Victoria Mboko 6-3, 5-7, 7-5.
Former world number one Naomi Osaka had to dig deep for a hard-fought 7-6(7/5), 6-7(3/7), 6-4 victory over American teenager Iva Jovic, setting up a high-profile fourth-round clash with Sabalenka.
Reuters
