Coco Gauff, the defending champion at Roland Garros, suffered an unexpected defeat in the third round, losing to Austria's Anastasia Potapova.The fourth-seeded Gauff fell 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 in a two-and-a-half-hour match.

Despite a strong comeback from a 5-2 deficit in the second set, Gauff was unable to secure the set in the tiebreaker and ultimately lost the deciding set.

This marks Gauff’s worst performance at Roland Garros since her debut in 2020 and follows a series of challenging results in recent grand slam tournaments, including early exits at Wimbledon and the US Open.Potapova, the 28th seed, advanced to the fourth round for the first time since 2024, equaling her best Roland Garros performance.The match was part of a difficult day for American women in Paris, with Amanda Anisimova also being eliminated.

Gauff had previously made it to the quarterfinals at the Australian Open this year but had higher hopes for her return to the famous clay courts of Roland Garros.

Her loss, along with other upsets like Novak Djokovic's defeat by teen Joao Fonseca and Jannik Sinner's early exit, highlights the unpredictable nature of this year's tournament.Gauff now faces the challenge of rebuilding momentum for future competitions.