Alexei Popyrin has broken more fresh ground in his soaring career as he brightened up a gloomy day in Paris by reaching the third round of the French Open for the first time.
But while the 25th seed was battling his way past Chilean Alejandro Tabilo, 7-5 6-3 6-4 on a drizzle-splattered outside court, Ajla Tomljanovic’s big date under the roof of Court Phillippe Chatrier turned into a bit of a damp squib as she succumbed 6-3 6-3 to 2024 finalist Jasmine Paolini.
The two matches ended within 30 seconds of each other on Wednesday with Popyrin’s delight at overcoming a potentially tricky hurdle in stark contrast to Tomljanovic’s frustration at not being able to offer more of a threat to the Italian No 4 seed amid a second-set fightback.
Popyrin, the lanky Sydneysider who made history last year by becoming the first Australian in a generation to win a Masters 1000 event, always held the initiative against Tabilo, a dangerous opponent on all surfaces who beat Novak Djokovic on clay in Rome last year.
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Having ended his six-match losing sequence at Roland Garros in the first round, Popyrin was left delighted to become the first Australian to advance to the last-32 this year – and so far without dropping a set.
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