There will be a first-time women’s singles champion at Roland Garros this year. Defending titleholder Coco Gauff’s bid for back-to-back titles ended Saturday with a gritty three-set defeat to Anastasia Potapova.
Roland Garros to have new winner this season after defending champion Coco Gauff crashes out of French Open
The fourth-seeded American, who triumphed on the same Philippe-Chatrier court in 2025, fell to the 28th-seeded Potapova 4-6, 7-6(1), 6-4 in two-and-a-half hours. Gauff took the opening set and led 3-1 in the decider, but the Russian-turned-Austrian player stormed back, firing 29 winners, many from her potent backhand, to seal the upset.
Potapova, enjoying a strong resurgence this spring, now advances to the fourth round with her third career win over Gauff. The result adds to a wave of shocks at the 2026 French Open. On Sunday, four-time champion Iga Świątek was also eliminated in straight sets by Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk on her 25th birthday.
The result adds to a wave of shocks at the 2026 French Open. With both the top contenders and the defending champion now out, the women’s draw has opened wide, promising an unpredictable path to the title on the Parisian clay.
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