4 shocking tennis results from Day 4 of Paris Olympics 2024 ft. Coco Gauff's controversial teary exit
Day 4 of the 2024 Paris Olympics saw high-quality tennis action and produced several stunning upsets. Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Daniil Medvedev, and Alexander Zverev were a few of the big-name players who took to the court on July 30.
The third round of the women's main draw and the second round of the men's main draw concluded on Day 4 of the 2024 Paris Olympics. Swiatek, Zverev, and Medvedev faced little resistance from their opponent and got one step closer to a podium finish at the French capital.
However, several high-profile names had to swallow the bitter pill after seeing the end of their campaigns. With that said, here are the four most shocking results from Day 4 of the 2024 Paris Olympics:
#4 Leylah Fernandez
Canadian No. 1 Leylah Fernandez was seeded 16th in the women's singles at the Paris Olympics and made a confident start to her campaign with wins over former Roland Garros finalist Karolina Muchova and Cristina Bucsa. She came up against former Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber, who is playing her last ever tournament, in the third round on July 30.
The 36-year-old German made a terrific start to the contest, breaking Fernandez twice to take the first set. However, the duo's game became erratic in the second set, leading to eight breaks of serve. Kerber did slightly better than Fernandez and ousted the talented Canadian from the competition, 6-4, 6-3.
While the result extended Angelique Kerber's tennis career for at least one more match, it ended Leylah Fernandez's quest for an Olympic medal.
#3 Maria Sakkari
Maria Sakkari was doing well at the 2024 Paris Olympics after thumping wins over Danka Kovinic and Yue Yuan in her first two singles contests. The seventh-seeded Greek faced Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine in the third round. It's safe to say that both women were not at their best, as they endured 10 breaks of serves each throughout the match.
Sakkari won the first set, only Kostyuk to level the score via a second set tiebreaker. In the deciding set, the Ukrainian just managed to edge past her Greek opponent and registered a come-from-behind 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 win.
#2 Jasmine Paolini
Jasmine Paolini is having the best season of her tennis career. She won her maiden 1000-level title at Dubai and finished runner-up at the French Open and Wimbledon. As a result, she broke into the top 5 of the WTA Ranking for the first time. She continued her red-hot form at the Paris Olympics with straight-set wins over Ana Bogdan and Magda Linette.
In the third round, the diminutive Italian faced a resurgent Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, who took the first set of the contest via three breaks of Paolini's serve. The scoreline was leveled in the second set after Paolini exploited Schmiedlova's unforced errors. The Italian struggled to maintain her form in the third set and lost the match 7-5, 3-6, 7-5.
Given her recent accomplishments, Jasmine Paolini was expected to win a singles medal at the Paris Olympics. Instead, the 28-year-old became the latest victim of Schmiedlova's dream run, which includes wins over Katie Boulter and Beatriz Haddad Maia.
#1 Coco Gauff
Coco Gauff progressed to the third round at the Paris Olympics after dropping just five games in her first two contests. She seemed well on her way to collecting a medal until her third-round match against Donna Vekic. The Croat came to Paris on the back of a semifinal finish at Wimbledon and looked confident during her early rounds at the Olympics.
Vekic did well to contain Gauff's explosive game style and managed to gain the one-set advantage. Midway through the second set, Gauff completely lost her concentration after a lengthy argument with the chair umpire over a disputed call. She was in tears after the incident, and Vekic shifted gears to break Gauff three times and race away with a 7-6 (7), 5-2 victory.