First upset in Roland Garros: World No. 4 Taylor Fritz stunned by Daniel Altmaier

The American No. 1, Taylor Fritz, continues a run of inconsistent months, falling in the first round of the French Open to world No. 66 Daniel Altmaier. The German delivered a splendid performance to eliminate the fourth seed in the first round with a score of 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.

Fritz now has his fourth loss in his last five clay-court matches, and as a result, he will drop at least one spot in the rankings to world No. 5. The 27-year-old exits the tournament early, leaving an open space in the draw.

Fritz managed to save himself multiple times throughout the match thanks to his aces (14 in total) and a high efficiency of 79% points won with his first serve. However, a poor 53% of first serves in was too low to compete against a clay-specialist like Altmaier, who was more precise than his opponent.

The German surprisingly took the lead in the first set, saving a set point against him at 4-5. However, he capitalized on the momentum and secured the break in the following game, closing the set on his serve 7-5. Although Fritz fought back in the second set – with a comfortable 6-3 – the second half of the match belonged entirely to Altmaier.

In the following two sets, Fritz failed to get any breaks, while Altmaier secured four in total. The final set was a complete collapse for Fritz, who, after reaching 1-1, didn't win another game as Altmaier managed three consecutive breaks.

The 26-year-old German earns the best victory of his career, his first against a top-5 player (and fifth against a top-10 player). Altmaier returns to the second round of Roland Garros for the second consecutive year and will face Czech Vit Koopriva for a spot in the third round of the French Open.