Roland Garros: Seyboth Wild Upsets Daniil Medvedev, books place in round two

Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild earned the biggest win of his career Tuesday when he stunned World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev in a five-set thriller at Roland Garros.

Seyboth Wild was making his debut in Paris but showed little sign of nerves on Court Philippe Chatrier, swinging freely throughout the four-hour, 15-minute clash to upset the second seed 7-6(5), 6-7(6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

“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,” Seyboth Wild said. “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.”

The World No. 172 clubbed 69 winners and recovered from squandering two set points in the second-set tie-break, raising his level again in the latter stages of the first-round clash to seal his maiden main-draw major win.

Seyboth Wild, who has won two ATP Challenger Tour titles this year, was competing in his first tour-level match this season. He will look to back up his dream win against Medvedev when he plays Frenchman Quentin Halys or Guido Pella in the second round.

“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,” Seyboth Wild said. “I am really happy with the way I played.”

Medvedev arrived in Paris off the back of winning his first clay-court title in Rome and would have been hoping for a comfortable start to his title quest at the clay-court major. Seyboth Wild had other ideas, though.

The Brazilian was locked in from the first ball, hitting through Medvedev with his baseline power. The 23-year-old played fearless tennis throughout, won 69 per cent (38/55) of net points and held his nerve in a tense deciding set, closing out victory on serve with a destructive forehand winner. Seyboth Wild raised his arms in delight following his stunning victory, soaking in the applause from the packed crowd.

Medvedev, who holds a 39-6 record on the season, was chasing his second major title. The 2021 US Open champion has won a Tour-leading five trophies in 2023, including ATP Masters 1000 crowns in Miami and Rome. The 27-year-old is first in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin but can now be overtaken by Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas in Paris.

There was no such trouble for two-time semi-finalist Alexander Zverev, who moved past South African Lloyd Harris 7-6(6), 7-6(0), 6-1.

Zverev struggled to find his best level in the first two sets, with Harris forcing the German into errors with his length. The 19-time tour-level champion refused to buckle, though, saving two set points in the second set before he found more control in the third set to wrap up victory after two hours and 40 minutes.

The 26-year-old, who is 17-14 on the season, will meet Alex Molcan in the second round after the Slovakian beat French wild card Hugo Gaston 6-1, 7-6(4), 6-4.