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Ten seeds have already been eliminated, among them Danil Medvedev and Taylor Fritz, but only today we witnessed the biggest equalization shock of Roland Garros. Casper Ruud, a two-time finalist in Paris, ended the competition by defeating 29-year-old Nuno Borges – 6:2, 4:6, 1:6, 0:6.
Borges, 41st on the ATP list, thus recorded his, and perhaps the biggest, Portuguese victory at a Grand Slam.
True, it was obvious that Ruud played the last two sets injured, which can be clearly seen from the fact that he only won one game in that period of play. If nothing else, kudos to him for holding on and giving his rival an unforgettable triumph.
It was certainly a big disappointment for the Norwegian, because he arrived in Paris after the finals in 2022 and 2023 - then he couldn't do it through Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic - only to be defeated by Aleksander Zverev in the semi-finals last season.
Borges' statements: I struggled, especially in the first set
Ruud has not been eliminated from Roland Garros this early since 2018, and to make matters worse, he arrived in Paris after winning the title at the Masters in Madrid (his biggest in his career) and the quarterfinals in Rome, where he was eliminated by Jannik Sinner.
It was bearable, the defeat against Borges would not have been possible if Rud had been healthy.
"I struggled, especially in the first set. I was completely drained. Ruud played with great intensity, and I didn't handle the situation the best. It was too much for me. But I kept trying and realized that he slowed down a bit. He was obviously not at 100 percent, the result wouldn't have been the same if he had been. Anyway, I'm proud of how I fought. I gave my best on every point and in the end I got lucky," said Borges after premier placement in the third round of Roland Garros.
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