Shock In Paris: Coco Gauff's Reign Cut Short, Naomi Osaka Steals The Show
Shock In Paris: Coco Gauff's Reign Cut Short, Naomi Osaka Steals The Show Published By, Last Updated: May 31, 2026, 01:17 IST Coco Gauffs French
Shock In Paris: Coco Gauff's Reign Cut Short, Naomi Osaka Steals The Show Published By, Last Updated: May 31, 2026, 01:17 IST Coco Gauffs French Open title defence ends as Anastasia Potapova wins a marathon third round, Naomi Osaka dazzles with bold fashion in Paris. Rapid Read Coco Gauff lost in three sets to Anastasia Potapova (Picture credit: AP) Coco Gauff met a player in Paris who could match her court coverage in long baseline rallies. Anastasia Potapova ended Gauff’s French Open title defence in the third round with a 4-6, 7-6 (1), 6-4 victory over the American on Saturday. “Coco is such a champion. I respect her so much," Potapova said. “I’m unbelievably proud of myself as well that I stayed there, that I kept fighting until the last point and here I am." The match was played in front of mostly empty stands inside Court Philippe-Chatrier, as French fans stayed away to watch the Champions League soccer final. Gauff’s second Grand Slam title came with a victory over top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the final at Roland Garros a year ago. The 30th-ranked Potapova, who was born in Russia but now represents Austria, improved to 3-2 in her career against Gauff. She is having quite a clay season after reaching a final in Linz, Austria, and the semifinals of the Madrid Open as a qualifier. The fourth-ranked Gauff was coming off a run to the Italian Open final. When Gauff shanked a forehand wide on Potapova’s first match point, Potapova fell on her back and covered her eyes as she stuck her feet up in the air in celebration.
Gauff waved to the crowd and quickly walked off court when the match was finished. It was not a matter of mistakes for Gauff; she smacked three double-faults to her opponent’s eight and had 46 unforced errors to Potapova’s 56. It was more that the latter controlled more of the longer rallies and wore Gauff out. Gauff ran a total of 2,309 meters to Potapova’s 2,090. Osaka’s fashion statement Earlier, Naomi Osaka beat 18-year-old American Iva Jovic 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-4 after nearly three hours — in her 100th Grand Slam match — to set up a round-of-16 meeting with top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka beat Daria Kasatkina 6-0, 7-5. For her second straight match, Osaka wore a metallic gold bomber jacket over a sequined gold playing dress during her walk-on. But this time her outfit was offset by a tannish-gold coloured train that stretched all the way down to the red clay on Court Suzanne-Lenglen. For her opening match, Osaka walked on in a ceremonial black skirt and sleeveless beaded bodice before revealing her gold dress, which she said reminded her of the Eiffel Tower sparkling at night. Then Osaka wore the bomber jacket and an ivory-coloured train for her second match. “It is a surprise every time," Osaka said of her fashion choices. “For me, it would be weirder to wear a normal tennis kit, almost, at this point. It’s the fun of it. For a long time, I didn’t have fun for a little bit.
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