World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev was upset by World No. 172 Thiago Seyboth Wild of Brazil in five sets at the first round of the 2023 French Open on Tuesday. Roland Garros tweeted of the match: “Twists and turns Qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild makes an emphatic entrance to his first #RolandGarros main draw appearance, knocking out No.2 seed Medvedev 7-6(5), 6-7(6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.”
Seyboth Wild pulled off the upset in his debut at Roland Garros debut, defeating Medvedev in the fifth set 7-6(5), 6-7(6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. Medvedev, who held the world No. 1 ranking for 16 weeks last year, entered the French Open having recently won his first clay-court title at the Italian Open. Medvedev suffered a brief nosebleed in the third set but won the set, before losing the fourth set after suffering three double faults. After Medvedev led 40-0, Seyboth Wild broke the opening game in the fifth set, winning the match four hours and 15 minutes.
The 23-year-old Seyboth Wild said during his on-court interview: “I have watched Daniil play for my entire junior career, up until today. 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. 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.”
Seyboth Wild will face either Quentin Halys or Guido Pella in the second round.
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