ATP Tour

Basavareddy stuns Fritz at Roland Garros

Nishesh Basavareddy earned the first major upset of Roland Garros Sunday evening in Paris.

The American wild card stunned countryman Taylor Fritz, the seventh seed, 7-6(5), 7-6(5), 6-7(9), 6-1 in two hours and 45 minutes to reach the second round for the second consecutive Grand Slam tournament.

In his main draw debut at the clay-court major, Basavareddy showed no fear of the Court Suzanne-Lenglen stage. The 21-year-old was aggressive early, using plenty of drop shots and his backhand down the line, before taking the initiative on his return later in the match.

Basavareddy withstood 71 winners from Fritz, hitting 51 of his own to claim the first Top-10 victory of his career (previously 0-3). The former Stanford University student-athlete became the first American man to beat a Top-10 opponent at Roland Garros since Jan-Michael Gambill eliminated then-World No. 8 Nicolas Kiefer in 2000.

The two-time Next Gen ATP Finals competitor Basavareddy had played just five tour-level matches this season when he walked on court against Fritz. But the No. 148 player in the PIF ATP Rankings played well above that standing, saving three of the four break points he faced according to Infosys Stats.

Fritz arrived in Paris short on matchplay, having competed in just one tournament since Miami due to a knee injury. The 28-year-old played last week in Geneva, but it was not enough to find the tennis he needed to stave off Basavareddy. The World No. 9 has now lost in the Roland Garros first round in two consecutive years.

Basavareddy will continue on in Paris with the potential of playing another young American in Alex Michelsen, who takes on Aleksandr Shevchenko in the first round.