It’s painful, but I guess that’s tennis: Berrettini

German qualifier Daniel Altmaier sent seventh seed Matteo Berrettini packing

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Daniel Altmaier defeated seventh seed Matteo Berrettini at the French Open

Seventh seed Matteo Berrettini crashed out of the French Open after a surprising 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-4 defeat to German qualifier Daniel Altmaier in the third round on Saturday.

The Italian, who made the semi-final of the US Open last year, has not been able to go past the third round at the clay-court Grand Slam.

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“Pretty upset. I was really feeling bad on the court. I’m feeling bad now,” said the 24-year-old after going down to the 186-ranked Altmaier.

“I didn’t play well in the big stage. It’s painful. But I guess that’s tennis. For me, I felt the conditions were pretty heavy. I tried to fight. I tried to play with what I had, but wasn’t enough. I think he really deserved the win.”

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“It’s my first time on this court and playing in Paris, I’m delighted to be in the fourth round,” the 22-year-old German said after scripting a memorable win on Court Philippe-Chatrier. He had defeated Feliciano Lopez and 30th seed Jan-Lennard Struff in the previous rounds.

“Before qualifying, I was struggling with an injury, so I wasn’t sure I was going to play. I hope the crowd and the TV audience enjoyed watching, as I want to entertain.”

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In the Round of 16, Altmaier will take on US Open semi-finalist Pablo Carreno Busta, who defeated fellow Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 on Saturday.

Tsitsipas sets up Dimitrov clash

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov set up a blockbuster fourth round clash after their respective opponents retired with injury.

Fifth seed Tsitsipas was leading 6-1, 6-2, 3-1 when Aljaz Bedene, who received on-court treatment for a right foot injury, retired after 80 minutes on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

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Meanwhile, Dimitrov, the No 18 seed, was leading Roberto Carballes Baena 6-1, 6-3 when the Spaniard withdrew due to illness.

“At 3 a.m. I woke up with a pain in my stomach and feeling so bad,” said Carballos Baena, who had defeated Denis Shapovalov in five hours in the previous round. “Then I warmed up this morning. I was feeling better. But after the warm-up, I was sick again two times. It was tough.”

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Tsitsipas, who will face Dimitrov for the first time, said, “Being able to compete in a second week gives me a lot of confidence. It feels great. You feel like you’re part of a prestige.”

Jabeur sends Sabalenka packing

Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman to reach the fourth round of the French Open as she beat eighth seed Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7), 2-6, 6-3.

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The 30th seed displayed her trademark court craft to undermine Sabalenka’s raw power as she surpassed her previous best third round showing at Roland Garros in 2017.

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