Walton Knocks Out Medvedev At Roland Garros
Anotida
Australian qualifier Adam Walton produced one of the biggest upsets of the opening round at Roland Garros after defeating World No. 8 Daniil Medvedev in a five-set battle on Tuesday.
Walton, ranked No. 97 in the PIF ATP Rankings, secured a 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 victory in three hours and 22 minutes to record his first Grand Slam win against a Top-10 opponent.
The 27-year-old rallied from 2-4 down in the deciding set and won the final four games to complete the upset on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.
Walton also defeated Medvedev at last year’s Cincinnati Open when the Russian was ranked inside the world’s top 15.“I’m just really proud of my efforts in the fifth set, to come from a break down to get the win,” Walton said in his on-court interview after the match.
Despite losing the second and fourth sets heavily, Walton remained composed under pressure and saved 16 of the 21 break points he faced during the contest.
Medvedev finished with 54 winners compared to Walton’s 34, according to ATP statistics, but the former World No. 1 struggled with consistency and committed 54 unforced errors.
The result gives Walton a 2-1 advantage in their ATP head-to-head meetings.
He will next face Zachary Svajda in the second round after the American defeated Alexei Popyrin in four sets.
Elsewhere, 2021 Roland Garros finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas advanced after Alexandre Muller retired while trailing 6-2, 3-0.
Tsitsipas will now face Matteo Arnaldi, who upset 29th seed Tallon Griekspoor in four sets.Meanwhile, 18th seed Learner Tien continued his impressive form with a 6-0, 2-6, 6-0, 6-2 victory over Cristian Garin.
Tien, who recently won the Geneva Open title, fired 39 winners and 12 aces to secure his first main-draw match win at Roland Garros.
The American will next play qualifier Facundo Diaz Acosta for a place in the third round after the Argentine defeated Zhang Zhizhen in straight sets.
