After surprising Daniil Medvedev in his debut, Thiago Wild showed this Thursday (1st) that his victory over the number two in the world was not by chance at Roland Garros. The Brazilian tennis player advanced to the third round by overcoming the experienced Argentine Guido Pella by 3 sets to 1, with partials of 6/3, 3/6, 6/4 and 6/3, in 2h55min of departure, in Paris.
It will be the first time that the 23-year-old Brazilian tennis player will compete in this phase of a Grand Slam. On Thursday, he played in a Major main draw for just the third time in his career. The second was precisely the victory over Medvedev and then on the famous central court of Roland Garros, the Philippe-Chatrier.
Wild is only ranked 172nd in the world and had to overcome qualifying, the preliminary round, to reach the main draw. Packed, he starred in the first upset of the competition on Tuesday. Now the tennis player from Paraná will face the Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka, current 27th seed.
Nishioka advanced in the group by eliminating the Australian Max Purcell also by 3 to 1, with partials of 4/6, 6/2, 7/5 and 6/4. The 27-year-old Japanese is currently ranked 33rd in the world and has two ATP titles under his belt. Wild has only one, won in Santiago, Chile, in 2020. The two tennis players have never faced each other on the professional circuit.
This Thursday, Wild fluctuated in service, with eight aces and nine double faults. But he showed consistency in the backcourt, with good variations. Aggressive with his shots, as usual, the Brazilian ended the match with 45 winning balls, against 26 for the 33-year-old Argentine. And he ended up committing more unforced errors: 44 to 29. Wild won five breaks of serve, in 12 opportunities, against three of his rival, currently 423rd in the world – he was already 20th in the world.
A promise of Brazilian tennis that is becoming a reality at Roland Garros, the man from Paraná made news both inside and outside the tennis world by overthrowing Medvedev, current number two in the world, right on his debut. The great result, however, shared the sports headlines with a complaint of domestic violence against his ex-girlfriend, Thayane Lima.
After shining on Medvedev, the Brazilian was asked about the case at the post-game press conference. He dodged on the topic. “I don’t think this is a subject we should talk about here. I don’t think it’s a question you should ask anyone. I don’t think it’s up to you to decide whether it’s a place to talk or not,” said the tennis player. “You can write whatever you want. By the way, I’ve never been married. Okay? So leave that aside,” he declared, referring to a question from a journalist who spoke of “ex-wife”.
At the end of the press conference, German reporter Jannik Schneider reported that he had been intimidated by a member of Wild’s team after asking questions about domestic violence allegations. The person would have tried to photograph the reporter’s credential.
Other results
If he keeps up the good rhythm, Wild will be able to cross in the round of 16 with the winner of the duel between the experienced Croatian Borna Coric (15th seed) and the Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Coric eliminated fellow Argentine Pedro Cachin 6/3, 4/6, 4/6, 6/3, 6/4. And Etcheverry eliminated the Australian Alex de Minaur (18th) 6/3, 7/6 (7/2) 6/3.
Current Roland Garros runner-up, Norwegian Caster Ruud secured his place in the third round by defeating Italian Giulio Zeppieri 6/3, 6/2, 4/6, 7/5. His next opponent will be the Chinese Zhang Zhizhen, executioner of the Argentine Agustin Tirante by 7/6 (7/3), 6/3 and 6/4. And the experienced Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (28th) advanced by defeating the Finnish Emil Ruusuvuori by 7/6 (7/4), 6/3, 6/4.
