Daniil Medvedev fell at the first hurdle at the 2025 French Open as he lost a five-set thriller to Cameron Norrie – and the result could benefit Novak Djokovic.
Norrie, a former world No 8 currently ranked 81st, stunned Medvedev 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 1-6, 7-5 on Court Simonne-Mathieu on Day Three at Roland Garros.
No 11 seed Medvedev was on the brink of completing a sensational comeback when he led 5-3 in the fifth set, but he failed to serve the match out at 5-4 as Norrie won the final four games to seal a sizeable upset.
Asked what was in his mind during the match point, Norrie said: “Not a lot, to be honest (smiles). Yeah, it was an incredible atmosphere and thank you to everyone for supporting me.
“I really felt like I had momentum there, it was kind of similar to the first set and I just felt a lot of energy there and managed to get over the line. I think he was a little bit tentative, but honestly it was a crazy match.
“He’s so tough to beat, I think I deserve a diploma for beating Medvedev, he’s got me the last four or five times. So yeah, unreal match.
“He raised his level and I dropped my intensity [in the third and fourth sets] and I was not able to hang with him, but I was able to find some energy in that fifth set.
“And yeah I was just moving really well and yeah, I don’t really remember much of the fifth and being 5-4 down and suddenly winning the match, it was crazy.
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“Nice to get through the first round and beating Daniil and I just really enjoyed the match start to finish, it was incredible tennis from both. An amazing win for me, so much fun.”
The 29-year-old Brit’s triumph has earned him a great opportunity to progress further as he will face 144th-ranked lucky loser Federico Agustin Gomez in the second round.
Medvedev is the latest high-profile star to exit the men’s singles draw in the opening round after fourth seed Taylor Fritz and 18th seed Francisco Cerundolo crashed out on Monday.
Cerundolo, a dangerous clay-courter, was a potential fourth round opponent for third seed Alexander Zverev, while he could have met No 6 seed Djokovic if he reached the quarter-finals.
Medvedev was projected to play Djokovic in the last 16, and his loss has only improved what was already seen as a great draw for the 24-time Grand Slam winner.
While Medvedev has been far from his best this season, his pedigree as a former world No 1 who holds five wins over Djokovic — including in a Grand Slam final — made him the biggest threat the Serb could have faced before the last eight.
With the 29-year-old Russian’s exit, the only seeded player Djokovic could now meet in the fourth round is 22nd seed Ugo Humbert — who is at his least comfortable on clay by a significant margin.
Norrie and another unseeded British player — Jacob Fearnley — are other potential last 16 opponents for Djokovic.
Djokovic is facing Mackenzie McDonald in his opening round match, while he would likely play Corentin Moutet in the second round and Denis Shapovalov in the third round.
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