The first major upset of the 2023 French Open took place on Tuesday, when Thiago Seyboth Wild stunned world No. 2 and recent Rome champion Daniil Medvedev.
Seyboth Wild triumphed in a five-setter that lasted four hours and 15 minutes, impressively serving out the match at 5-4 in the decider to clinch a 7-6(5), 6-7(6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.
How big of an upset was it? Seyboth Wild is ranked No. 172 in the world and had not played a single match on the main tour in 2023 prior to taking the court on Tuesday. The 23-year-old Brazilian, who obviously had to qualify last week, had also never won a main-draw match at a Grand Slam in his career.
Meanwhile, Medvedev is back up to No. 2 in the rankings following his triumph at the Rome Masters two weeks ago. The 27-year-old Russian has never been at his best on clay, but the Rome result and a French Open quarterfinal appearance in 2021 inspired plenty of confidence for this fortnight.
Instead, Medvedev did not even make it out of the first round.
“I have watched Daniil play for my entire junior career (and) up until today,” Seyboth Wild said during his on-court interview. “Playing on this court against this kind of player and beating him is a dream come true. Walking on court I just wanted to get to the net as much as possible and use my forehand against his and it worked pretty well.
“It was pretty tough (physically). I started cramping in the second set. I did my best and tried to play my best tennis and it worked. I am really happy with the way I played.”
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