French Open 2017: Results, Highlights, Wednesday Scores Recap from Roland Garros
Defending champion Novak Djokovic was sensationally dumped out of the 2017 French Open on Wednesday, as he was comfortably beaten in straight sets by Dominic Thiem.
After a tight first set, the young Austrian took the game away from Djokovic and wrapped the match up with a bagel in the final stanza. Thiem will take on Rafael Nadal on Thursday, with the Spaniard progressing at the expense of his compatriot Pablo Carreno Busta, who retired with an injury.
Later in the day, top seed Andy Murray came through in four sets against Kei Nishikori. The world No. 1 will play an in-form Stanislas Wawrinka in Friday's semi-final
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Meanwhile, in the women's bracket, Simona Halep saved a match point on her way to a thrilling three-set win over Elina Svitolina. Second seed Karolina Pliskova is also through, as she beat Caroline Garcia in straight sets.
Below are the results in full from a jam-packed day at Roland Garros and a recap of how the action played out from Paris.
Wednesday Results
Men's Draw
(1) Andy Murray bt. (8) Kei Nishikori, 2-6 6-1 7-6 (0) 6-1
(6) Dominic Thiem bt. (2) Novak Djokovic, 7-6 (5) 6-3 6-0
(3) Stan Wawrinka bt. (7) Marin Cilic, 6-3 6-3 6-1
(4) Rafael Nadal bt. Pablo Carreno Busta, 6-2 2-0 (rtd)
Women's Draw
(2) Karolina Pliskova bt. (28) Caroline Garcia, 7-6(3) 6-4
(3) Simona Halep bt. (5) Elina Svitolina, 3-6, 7-6(6) 6-0
Wednesday Recap
There have been small signs at this tournament that Djokovic has been rediscovering some form after a difficult year, although throughout the clay-court season, there have been dashes of vulnerability in his play.
Thiem exposed those frailties brilliantly here. After digging in in the first set and taking it to a tiebreak, the Austrian was quicker across the court and pummelled the Djokovic backhand, forcing the 12-time Grand Slam winner into a string of mistakes.
As noted by Stuart Fraser of the Times, it's been a long time since Djokovic was dominated so much over a set of tennis:
"This is a whole new situation for me, not winning a big tournament for eight or nine months—this hasn't happened for a while," said the dispirited former champion afterwards, per BBC Sport. "All the top players have gone through that and I guess I have to learn lessons and figure how to get through. It is a big challenge and I'm up for it."
Next up for Thiem is arguably the toughest challenge in tennis—beating a fresh Nadal on the Roland Garros clay.
In the other side of the draw, Murray continued his rejuvenation in Paris, as he ground down a fast-starting Nishikori.
Russell Fuller of BBC Sport suggested the Scot will have to improve further if he is going to progress into Sunday's final:
That's because Wawrinka continued his exceptional form at the tournament, too, negotiating a tricky contest against Marin Cilic with relative ease.
Meanwhile, there was a thriller in the women's draw, as Halep recovered from a set and 5-1 down to beat Svitolina.
Previously, the Romanian has been accused of wilting on the big stage, and she looked poised to fall to another underwhelming loss. But she excelled with her back against the wall, saving a match point in a second-set tiebreak, levelling things up and then serving Svitolina a bagel in the decider.
As noted by bet365, it was quite the turnaround from the Romanian, who is seeking to win her first-ever Grand Slam title here:
Things won't get any easier for Halep on Thursday, though, as she will take on Pliskova in what promises to be an excellent semi-final.
The Czech had the crowd against her on Wednesday in her quarter-final showdown with home hope Garcia, yet she was still able to show her class in the pressure moments.
Pliskova was ruthless in the tiebreak in the opener, and then at the climax of an even second set, she conjured a set point on the Garcia serve and took it. Halep must ensure she doesn't offer the second seed a head-start.
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