The fourth day at the French Open featured a total of 15 second-round matches on the men’s side, as the field of players remaining in the draw keeps shrinking with every passing day. We had comeback wins, statements made, and exciting third-round matches are already set for the upcoming Friday. Here is a complete recap of all the action that occurred on Day 4 in Paris.
Biggest Upsets of the Round
Interestingly, only two seeds fell on Day 4, but both of the results were somewhat expected, so classifying them as true upsets would not be fair. Ugo Humbert, for whom clay is by far the worst surface, lost to fellow Frenchman Quentin Halys in straight sets. Meanwhile, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina fell to Thiago Agustin Tirante after not having fully recovered from the physical issues he had been dealing with in the first round.
So, while we did not have any real upsets, the biggest surprise of the day was how Dino Prizmic, a player very capable on the red clay, let go of a two-set lead against Joao Fonseca, showing little to no resistance as Fonseca got his first-ever career win from two sets down. His reward for doing so? Facing Novak Djokovic in the third round.
Performance of the Round
Both Tommy Paul and Casper Ruud had clinical victories against tricky opponents as they came through in straight sets each. They will now face off against each other in the third round in what is a match that will surely have the attention of the entire tournament.
But while those two players had great performances, they fall short in the performance of the day category to the No. 2 seed in Paris this fortnight, Alexander Zverev. Up against a very challenging opponent in Tomas Machac, the German controlled the match from the first point to the last, winning in straight sets and not even getting his serve broken once. The German has now won both of his matches so far this tournament comprehensively as he looks set for another deep run at the French Open, one in which, with the absence of Carlos Alcaraz, he probably knows he will not get many better chances to make another Major final.
Match of the Day
As mentioned above, Fonseca coming back to win from two sets down was a memorable moment, but the match itself was not particularly inspiring as Prizmic’s level completely disappeared after the first two sets. Jodar and Duckworth also had a back-and-forth four-set match that was exciting to watch, and any match involving Novak Djokovic should always be kept an eye on as well.
But the match of the day was clearly Jakub Mensik’s five-set, match-tiebreak victory over Mariano Navone. It was the sort of match that Mensik, who had a terrible 2-8 record in five-set matches entering the encounter, typically loses, as he had already missed a bunch of match points and blown a big lead in the match tiebreak. But under pressure, the Czech kept his nerves and ultimately won the match despite severe cramps and a heat stroke scare.
Unfortunately for him, the cramps looked much more serious than initially expected, as following the conclusion of the match, Mensik could not get back to his feet after falling to the court in celebration. As such, his participation in the next round remains to be seen.
Biggest Talking Point
Fonseca’s comeback, Djokovic’s four-set win against a pro-French crowd, and the favorites winning most of their matches are all factors that can be mentioned here, but I’m taking this to the heat and severe conditions in Paris, which have already caused many issues for the players, including cramps, dehydration, and heat strokes.
That, especially with the ever-increasing physical strain on the players due to the packed tennis schedule, added a sour taste to this day, which began with Alexander Blockx already having to withdraw from his match and ended with not only Thanasi Kokkinakis retiring mid-match, but Hailey Baptiste on the women’s side seemingly picking up a catastrophic knee injury.
That is not to mention how many matches featured players dealing with physical issues, as both Davidovich Fokina and Mensik looked severely hampered by the end of their matches. With global warming, the increasing amount of tennis matches required to be played, and inconsistent balls, the variables that can negatively affect the players continue to rise, as another day of tennis was sadly influenced by things the players have no real control over.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images