Cédric Chasseur with AFP / Photo credit: Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP
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08:09, June 02, 2023
There are no longer any Frenchmen in the main draws at Roland-Garros. The French Arthur Rinderknech, the last tricolor in the running, was beaten this Thursday evening in four sets by the American Taylor Fritz. Earlier in the day, Océane Dodin and Diane Parry had also been eliminated from the tournament.
Arthur Rinderknech, 78th in the world, was eliminated Thursday evening in the second round of Roland-Garros by the American Taylor Fritz (8th) 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4, so that he there are no longer any French men or women competing in the tournament. Of the 28 Habs involved in the main draws, Rinderknech (27) was the last to still be able to reach the third round after the eliminations during the day of Diane Parry and Océane Dodin and the package of Gaël Monfils. The absence of Tricolores in the third round at Roland-Garros had only happened once before in the Open era, in 2021.
Loud support
Rinderknech had never passed the first round at Roland-Garros in his three previous appearances. He reached the second round at the Australian Open and the US Open, his best Grand Slam result to date. It is Fritz who will face the Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo (23rd) for a place in the round of 16. The 25-year-old American reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon last year, which remains his best Grand Slam result to date. But he never went beyond the third round on Parisian soil.
Faced with Rinderknech who was very loudly supported from the start by the public at the Suzanne-Lenglen court, Fritz had a complicated start which earned him the loss of the first round. He then regained his efficiency on serve and dominated the rest of the game, played in a Davis Cup atmosphere. Several Marseillaises were sung and the public did everything possible to destabilize Fritz, without worrying about the remonstrances of the referee. So much so that once the match point was won, Fritz made a long sign to the public to be quiet with his finger on his mouth… which only had the effect of increasing the boos tenfold. “The public was so great, they encouraged me so much that I absolutely wanted to win,” he quipped at the only question asked by Marion Bartoli on the court.