Taylor Fritz’s bid to nab his first Grand Slam win at the French Open ended almost before it started.
Daniel Altmaier shocked Fritz – the top-seeded American in the tournament – in a four-set first-round match Monday at Roland Garros in Paris. Fritz only won the second set before his elimination in the 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 defeat.
Fritz, 27, was ranked No. 4 in the world and thought to be his home country’s best chance after winning three matches in last year’s French Open. The last American to win the French Open was Andre Agassi in 1999.
Fritz has eight career tournament wins but hasn’t built on his breakout success of 2024, when he reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and Wimbledon and was the runner-up at the U.S. Open.
It marked the first time that Fritz has been bounced from the first round of the French Open since 2018.
Fritz reportedly was dealing with a right oblique injury for the last few months, though he declared himself “100 percent” last week during a media session.
And his history playing on clay is inconsistent and on a recent downturn.
Fritz recently suffered a first-round loss to Marcus Giron at the Italian Open and a fourth-round defeat against Casper Ruud at the Madrid Open.
Fritz made 41 unforced errors against Altmaier, who entered the tournament ranked No. 66 by the ATP.
It was arguably the biggest win of the Altmaier’s career. The German made it to the fourth round of the French Open in 2024 but has not advanced out of the second round in any of the other three Grand Slams.
“It was very special,” Altmaier said afterward. “I think I was working really hard the past weeks to get confidence, preparing myself for those kinds of matches. I feel like I’m ready to play whoever is going to face me. I’m really happy to get this first win and I really love my performance.”