Anastasia Potapova comes from behind to end Coco Gauff’s Roland-Garros reign on Court Philippe-Chatrier at the 2026 French Open

It is all over!

The reigning champion, Coco Gauff is OUT!

Anastasia Potapova roars back from 30-0 down and tees up match point with a backhand down the line.

Gauff cannot fend it off as a rocket return seals a two hours and 33 minutes shock win for the Austrian 28th seed.

Potapova will now face Anna Kalinskaya in the fourth round.

Potapova throws everything into a hefty backhand at deuce as another game evolves into a ding-dong battle from the baseline.

The Austrian lets out a roar of delight and follows it a moment later with arms raised aloft as she outlasts Coco to lure a forehand long from the American.

Potapova contrives to fires an almost unmissable overhead long but recovers to pose a threat at 30-30 thanks to a clever pass down the line to conclude one of the points of the match.

Gauff keeps her at arm’s length and then pulls level at four apiece when the 28th seed lashes a rash forehand off the island.

Anastasia smacks her racquet against her heel in irritation as she is forced to play catch-up on serve once again.

The Austrian hustles hard to fend off two break points and then does well with a deep pick-up to edge the cat and mouse when Coco drills a backhand wide.

The 28th seed then shows her how to do it with a lovely winner up the line to get out of dodge and push the board in her favour.

Take a bow, Anastasia Potapova!

The Austrian bookends as break to love with sizzling backhand winners and this R3 clash takes another twist.

Potapova needs to find another gear when she double faults at 15-15 but she does re-focus sharply and some clutch serving help her come through to sta in the hunt.

Coco picks off Anastasia at the net with a forehand pass down the line to consolidate to 30 after battling back from 15-30 down.

For once Coco makes a bright start to a set!

The fourth seed probes throughout and opens the door to a pair of break points with a deep forehand that tees up a close-range smash.

The reigning champion only needs one of them as Potapova over-presses off the backhand and that’s a decent response after the low of that tie break.

Anastasia goes on the hunt for the break but drills a return just long at 30-30.

Gauff then retries a wide backhand with an excellent floated dropper that her opponent can only jab long on the pick-up.

The 28th seed shrugs off a double fault to race through a hold to 15 to kick off the decider on the front foot.

Potapova does indeed force a decider!

It’s perhaps slightly later than she would have hoped, but she gets it done via a one-sided 7-1 scoreline in the breaker.

Gauff will need to regroup quickly as she was incredibly flat throughout there.

Wow. After working so, so hard to keep this set alive, Coco leaks errors left, right and centre.

A first double fault of the contest compounds her misery, but she does finally get on the board ahead of the change of ends when Potapova fires off the island.

Anastasia finally digs out a hold to 30 as she ends a lung-bursting rally with a drive volley straight at Coco that the American can’t quite steer back into play.

Never rule out Coco Gauff.

That trademark grit and resilience is there for all to see as she serves out to love to hit the front from 2-5 down.

Potapova had chances to force the decider but couldn’t make it happen and she must now hold to stay in the tournament!

Déjà vu!

Potapova once again sees her grip on a set evaporate as Gauff turns on the after burners to break to 15 on her second opportunity courtesy of a thumping backhand down the line.

There it is, that most rare of sights on Chatrier over the past 45 minutes or so, a lesser-spotted hold!

Coco keeps the set alive as she suddenly finds some rhythm on serve and blasts her way through a game to 15.

Potapova can see the finish line when she unleashes a backhand winner to move 30-0 up.

Gauff suddenly ignites on the return again and great depth presses her opponent back and sees her work towards yet another break point.

Anastasia survives when Coco fires a backhand wide and it's the American's favoured wing that falters again with a strike into the net.

The 28th seed misses the line by a whisker on a first set point and then sees a blockbuster of a forehand return fly by her on a second.

More sharp returns to feet see Coco conjure up another BP and this time Potapova loses patience with a forehand long.

Potapova booms a pair of sizzling backhands down the line and nails one off the forehand for good measure to once again break Gauff to 15.

It’s not been an advert for the servers for we have seen some spectacular shot-making this evening.

It’s hands on hips time for Anastasia.

The Austrian hopeful lashes a forehand narrowly wide and then sees her serve chopped to bit as Coco lands some venomous returns to continue the break-a-thon.

Ouch.

After all of that hard work to get herself back in the set, Coco folds all-too easily and is broken to love.