Australia’s Alexei Popyrin is eyeing a deep run at Roland-Garros after the shock exit of seventh seed Casper Ruud blew a sizeable hole in his side of the draw.
Popyrin, the 25th seed in Paris, reached the third round of the French Open for the first time on Thursday (AEST) with a clinical 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 dispatching of Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo.
Popyrin will now play Nuno Borges after the Portugese hope took advantage of Ruud’s debilitating knee injury.
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Alexei Popyrin of Australia celebrates a point against Alejandro Tabilo of Chile. Getty
Borges advanced 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-0 as Ruud succumbed to an issue that has caused him issues throughout the clay court season.
Ruud’s pain is undoubtedly Popyrin’s gain.
The classy Dane is a two-time finalist at Roland-Garros and has reached at least the semi-finals in each of the last three years in Paris.
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He was also coming off a win at the Madrid Open earlier this month.
“Very pumped,” Popyrin told Duncan McKenzie-McHarg for Stan Sport’s Grand Slam Daily.
“I think that was probably the most solid match I’ve played all year. It’s how I want to play from now on, and it’s the kind of level that I want to bring day in, day out. I’m really pleased with the way I played all around today.”
Popyrin hit 37 winners, eight aces and won 75 per cent of his first serve points.
His 197cm height is one of his biggest weapons but his movement has also improved significantly and Tabilo struggled to find angles past him on Court 6.
New coach Wayne Ferreira has attracted the headlines but the 25-year-old also credited fitness guru Evan Jenkins for some crucial gains.
“I always thought I could move well, but since I hired my fitness coach Evan, in Madrid last year, we’ve been just working a lot on getting the muscles stronger so that I can move a little bit quicker and get into positions and get out of positions quicker,” he said.
“That’s a big, big key and a big, big way that I want to keep playing – is moving well, getting to balls and making things difficult for players.
“Today was was a great show of how I can move and it’s just doing it day in, day out and keeping it consistent.”
It all worked out beautifully in the end for Popyrin – but it almost went horribly wrong.
McKenzie-McHarg had to ask a sheepish Popyrin about his third set bathroom blunder.
“No, look, it was my fault. I didn’t go at the end of the second set,” he said.
“I always know that after the second set I’m busting and I was too lazy to go, so that’s my fault. And at 2-1 I started feeling my stomach, really painful, so I was like, shit, I gotta go.
“And then I tried to go without any notice and the door was locked. I had to wait another two games and then I went and luckily the rain came, so it delayed it a little bit and I was able to go.
“I should go after the second set. I’ll learn from that now.”
Borges is ranked 41st and is the first Portuguese man to reach the French Open’s third round.
“Really tricky customer. He has also got a really flat backhand which causes trouble to a lot of players, so it’s going to be a really tough match,” Popyrin told reporters.
“I’ve always had that confidence, I think, that on my day I can beat anybody. But that’s not important to me. What is important to me is bringing a consistent level day in, day out. And that’s what I’ve struggled with in the past.
“So when I play a higher ranked player, I tend to bring a good level and I give it a shot to to win. And I think I’ve done that in the past a lot, but it’s just consistently bringing that level, even against lower ranked opponents.”
Popyrin is one of four Australians left in the singles draw along with Alex de Minaur, Adam Walton and Daria Kasatkina.
Ajla Tomljanovic was knocked out 6-3, 6-3 by world No.4 Jasmine Paolini of Italy on Thursday (AEST).
