Reigning champion Coco Gauff has been knocked out of the French Open in the third round, losing 4-6 7-6(1) 6-4 to 28th seed Anastasia Potapova. The American, seeded fourth, fought back from a break down in the first set but could not overcome the in-form Austrian, who now advances to the last 16 at Roland Garros for the second time in her career.
The match featured 14 breaks of serve, with Potapova continuing her impressive clay-court season. She entered last month's Madrid Open as a lucky loser and reached the semi-finals, defeating world No. 2 Elena Rybakina along the way. She then made the last 16 in Rome before causing another major upset in Paris.
Gauff started slowly, dropping her opening service game, but rallied to win the first set. Potapova then raced to a 3-0 double-break lead in the second set, but neither player could hold serve consistently. Gauff was two points from victory when Potapova served at 5-6 30-30, but the Austrian forced a tiebreak, which she dominated 7-1.
In the deciding set, the pair traded breaks to level at 3-3. Gauff had break-point chances in the next game but failed to convert, and Potapova eventually broke for a 5-4 lead. Serving to stay in the match, Gauff could not prevent Potapova from sealing victory with a powerful return on match point.
After the two-hour, 37-minute contest, Potapova iced her elbow before addressing the crowd. 'I'm extremely happy and also with the fight we both showed,' she said. 'Coco is such a champion. I respect her so much. I am unbelievably proud of myself for fighting for the last point. I have had some big wins, but for sure this is up there, it's in the top three.'
Gauff's exit leaves only one former French Open women's singles champion in the draw, Iga Swiatek, opening the door for world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and four-time major winner Naomi Osaka.
