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French Open 2023 Day 3: Daniil Medvedev upset by world No. 172, Iga Swiatek sails through

There have been some upsets in Day 1 and Day 2 of the French Open, but nothing like what we saw on Day 3.

No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev, who is also the No. 2 men's singles player in the world, lost to 23-year-old Thiago Seyboth Wild, a Brazilian ranked No. 172 in the world and playing in his first French Open. After four hours, 15 minutes, Seyboth Wild defeated one of the world's best players 7-6(5), 6(6)-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

It was more than a good match. It was a thrilling match. Medvedev and Seyboth Wild left it all out there, with Seyboth Wild playing through cramps from the third set on. Tiebreaks in the first two sets set the tone for the up and down match, with Medvedev and Seyboth Wild taking one set each. Medvedev appeared to have found his stride in the third set, taking down his competitor with ease, but Seyboth Wild got over those cramps and swung for the fences in the fourth set.

Despite being tied at two sets each, it felt like Seyboth Wild had the edge going into the final set. He proved it almost immediately, coming back from 0-40 to break Medvedev's serve. While Medvedev put up a good fight, he never looked comfortable in the fifth set (a recurring theme with his clay game).

Ninety-nine out of 100 times, Medvedev probably wins that match. He served up 14 aces compared to Seyboth Wild's two. He made just 48 unforced errors while Seyboth Wild made 77. But that's why the games are played in real life and not just on paper. Anything can happen.

Brazil's Thiago Seyboth Wild celebrates his win over Daniil Medvedev in the first round of the French Open on May 30, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Brazil's Thiago Seyboth Wild celebrates his win over Daniil Medvedev in the first round of the French Open on May 30, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

How did the Americans do?

Coco Gauff did something on Tuesday she hadn't yet done in 2023: she came back to win a match after dropping the first set. It was touch-and-go for more than a few games, but Coco managed to pull out a win.

  • No. 6 Coco Gauff def. Rebeka Masarova 3-6, 6-1, 6-2

  • No. 6 Taylor Fritz def. Michael Mmoh 6-2, 6-1, 6-1

  • No. 16 Tommy Paul def. Dominic Stricker 6-3, 6-2, 6-4

  • Lauren Davis def. Lin Zhu 6-3, 6-3

  • Claire Liu def. Ylena In-Albon 6-1, 6-4

Chris Eubanks, J.J. Wolf, Alison Riske-Amritraj, Shelby Rogers, and Michael Mmoh (who faced Fritz) lost and will not be moving on to Round 2.

Other results

  • No. 1 Iga Swiatek had almost no trouble winning her Round 1 match against Cristina Busca, 6-4, 6-0, aside from a little first-set frustration at the very start.

  • No. 4 Elena Rybakina managed to survive a serious challenge from 16-year-old Brenda Fruhvirtova, who kept finding ways to put Rybakina off balance. Fruhvirtova had several chances to take a two-game lead in the second to potentially force a third set, but Rybakina was just too good and won 6-3, 6-4.

  • Casper Ruud, seeded fourth, defeated Elias Ymer 6-4, 6-3, 6-2, and is one step closer to returning to the French Open finals for the second year in a row.

  • Sixth-seeded Holger Rune dispatched Christopher Eubanks after dropping the second set, winning 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-2.

  • No. 7 Ons Jabeur erased the terrible memories of last year's first-round exit with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Lucia Bronzetti, and showed no sign of the calf injury that forced her to withdraw from the Madrid Open.

  • No. 13 Barbora Krejcikova, the 2021 French Open champion, lost in straight sets to Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko, who is unseeded at Roland Garros.

  • One year after his horrific ankle injury at Roland Garros, No. 22 Alexander Zverev defeated Lloyd Harris 7-6(6), 7-6(0), 6-1.

No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek cruised by Cristina Bucsa in the first round of the French Open on May 30, 2023 in Paris, France (Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images)
No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek cruised by Cristina Bucsa in the first round of the French Open on May 30, 2023 in Paris, France (Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images)

Highlight of the day

Mirra Andreeva, a 16-year-old from Russia playing in her first Grand Slam, managed to beat the experienced Alison Riske-Amritraj 6-1, 6-2. During her post-match news conference, she proved to be an absolute delight off the court as well, displaying the poise and charisma of a woman much older than 16. Here she is discussing the encouraging texts she received from Andy Murray and Ons Jabeur.

What to watch on Day 4

After three days of Round 1 play, Day 4 is finally the start of Round 2. There are only three matches involving Americans on Wednesday, but given the participants, they should be stellar.

  • No. 3 Jessica Pegula vs. Camila Giorgi

  • Petra Stearns vs. No. 17 Jelena Ostapenko

  • Sloane Stephens vs. Varvara Gracheva

And there are plenty of other matches not involving Americans to watch on Wednesday.

  • No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz vs. Taro Daniel

  • No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka vs. Iryna Shymanovich

  • No. 3 Novak Djokovic vs. Marton Fucsovics

  • No. 5 Caroline Garcia vs. Anna Blinkova

  • No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Roberto Carballes Baena

  • No. 7 Andrey Rublev vs. Corentin Moutet

  • No. 14 Cam Norrie vs. Lucas Pouille