Norrie upsets Medvedev in 'crazy' Roland Garros rollercoaster; Zverev wins

Cameron Norrie scored a major upset on Tuesday at Roland Garros, where he sunk 11th seed Daniil Medvedev in a gruelling five-set battle.

The Briton, currently No. 81 in the PIF ATP Rankings, dug deep for a 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 1-6, 7-5 victory to advance to the second round in Paris for the fifth time. After rallying from a two-sets-to-love deficit, Medvedev then failed to serve out the match at 5-4 in the decider before Norrie crossed the line after three hours, 53 minutes.

“It was an incredible atmosphere, I really felt like I had the momentum there,” Norrie said when asked of the conclusion to the match. “I felt a lot of energy, and I managed to get over the line. He was a little bit tentative, it was honestly a crazy match.

“He’s so tough to beat, I think I deserve a diploma for beating Medvedev… He’s got me the last four times.”

PASSING THE TEST 📖

Norrie pushes through an absolute thriller of a match to defeat Medvedev 7-5 6-3 4-6 1-6 7-5 🔥@rolandgarros | #RolandGarros | #Norrie pic.twitter.com/rlwkcOXnEn

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 27, 2025

Last week, Norrie rose nine spots in the PIF ATP Rankings with his run to the semi-finals in Geneva, where he lost to eventual champion Novak Djokovic. The former World No. 8 will now look to build on his run of form in Paris, where next faces Argentine lucky loser Federico Agustin Gomez.

Medvedev failed to serve out the opening set at 5-4 and Norrie subsequently won eight consecutive games to soar to a two-sets-to-love lead. The former US Open champion, Medvedev shifted to a more aggressive approach during the second set, but it was unsuccessful, thus reverting back to his more traditional counterpunching style, which proved pivotal.

Leading 2-1 in the third set, Medvedev received a medical timeout to treat a cut on his right index finger. Yet despite the increasingly loose grip on his racquet — and the first-round encounter with Norrie — Medvedev showed signs of resilience. The 29-year-old let slip two break points at 3-2 in the third, according to Infosys Stats, but responded with a mid-match streak of his own, during which he won seven straight games en route to levelling the contest.

However, it was Norrie's fighting spirit that stole the show in the end. The deciding set had traits of a dogfight early on, with Norrie saving four break points to hold serve after a 13-minute opening game. Yet while Medvedev appeared to be closing in on his fifth career comeback from a two-set deficit, Norrie held firm and stuck to his aggressive game plan, reeling off the final four games from 3-5 to seal his first Lexus ATP Head2Head victory over Medvedev in their fifth battle.

Medvedev’s first-round defeat draws parallels to his second-round loss at the Australian Open in January, when he rallied from two sets down only to fall to a gut-wrenching five-set defeat to #NextGenATP Learner Tien. Medvedev has now lost in the opening round at Roland Garros in six of his nine appearances in the French capital.

Now 18th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, the former Nitto ATP Finals champion faces a tough task to qualify for the prestigious season finale. He owns an 18-11 record on the season.

Last year’s Roland Garros runner-up, Alexander Zverev claimed a contrasting 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 first-round win over Tien on Tuesday. The third seed, who was also defeated by the American in Acapulco in February, saved all four break points faced during the one-hour, 53-minute clash.

The third-seeded Zverev, who has reached the semi-finals in each of his past four appearances at the clay-court major, will next play Francesco Passaro or Jesper de Jong.

“I’m very happy to be back in Paris, Roland Garros is a very special place to me,” said Zverev. “It was a good start to the tournament, very happy with the three set win. Hopefully it’s going to continue like this, and hopefully it’s going to be a fun two weeks here.”

_{^{Alexander Zverev in action on Tuesday at Roland Garros. Photo: Peter Staples.}} 

Zverev has experienced a topsy-turvy season since reaching his third major final in Melbourne in January. The German notably fell to opening-round defeats in Indian Wells and Monte-Carlo before triumphing at the ATP 500 in Munich. After surrendering the World No. 2 spot to Carlos Alcaraz, Zverev will hope to reignite his best form in Paris.

Last year, Zverev ended the Roland Garros career of 14-time champion Rafael Nadal in the first round. The Spaniard was honoured with a permanent plaque on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Sunday.