Stefanos Tsitsipas branded his performance against Holger Rune "ridiculous", admitting he allowed his frustrations to get the better of him on court during his shock last-16 exit at the French Open.
Having finished as runner-up at Roland Garros last year, the fourth seed crashed out in the fourth round this time around, going down 7-5 3-6 6-3 6-4 to the Danish teenager, who had only managed one previous win over a top-five opponent.
The three-hour contest began with Tsitsipas earning an early break, but the Greek went on to struggle against the 19-year-old, who became the first Danish player to reach a grand slam quarter-final during the open era.
Speaking during his post-match press conference, a visibly emotional Tsitsipas admitted he struggled to apply enough pressure on Rune, highlighting his own lack of rhythm on court.
"Great match from his side, but I have to say it was a very bad management from my side," he said.
"I was struggling a lot the last couple of days in terms of finding my rhythm. I was very nervous on the court, being frustrated a lot, and I knew I was this way, but I couldn't stop being like this.
"I was a completely different player once I stepped into the court, taking returns [too] early.
"I think we could see that in the last two service games of his, I was really able to apply a lot of pressure; it was day and night, pretty much, that transformation.
"I just, you know, didn't have my mind completely there when I had to make those changes. It came way too late on in that match, way too late.
"I wasn't really applying a lot of pressure, it was ridiculous at a point, and again I was stubborn, I was stubborn to change it. I need to adjust way quicker, it's too late for this stuff."
Tsitsipas, who squandered a two-set lead in his 2021 final defeat to Novak Djokovic in the French capital, had been tipped by many to repeat his run to the final after landing on the opposite side of the draw to pre-tournament favourites Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz.
But the Greek refuted suggestions the pressure that comes with a supposedly kinder draw had hindered his performances, telling reporters: "Absolutely not. I don't watch draws, I don't watch my next opponents.
"I pretty much know the progress and the way I need to do things in order to get to where I was last year, and that doesn't come easy, for sure.
"Of course, I knew I'm going to have to play difficult opponents that know how to play on this surface, but mentally, physically, tennis-wise, I felt good.
"It's just that I had a few troubles in practice. Again, back to frustration, back to not understanding certain things and certain patterns that I was trying to impose.
"He [Rune] is a very emotional player, he can play great, he absolutely deserves this victory, [he] played better, faced tough moments better. But I can see something different next time with this opponent. I'm pretty convinced I can do way better.
"This is not where I've maxed out, let's say. I didn't give myself the opportunity to max out. I didn't give myself the opportunity to go all the way and that is a shame."
World number one Swiatek sees off Xiyu in Madrid opener
World number one Iga Swiatek overcame Wang Xiyu with the minimum of fuss on Thursday to progress to the third round of the Madrid Open.
Swiatek has yet to win the title in Madrid, which is the only clay-court European event at which the Pole has not triumphed, but she got off to a flying start with a 6-1 6-4 victory over Xiyu.
"I love this place. I got to know the city a little better last year," Swiatek said. "So this time I feel more comfortable around."
Next up for the 22-year-old is a third-round tie against 27th seed Sorana Cirstea on Saturday.
Data Debrief
Swiatek has registered 150 match wins on the WTA Tour since the start of 2022. Elena Rybakina and Coco Gauff are the next best with 108 wins each.
She also became the first player born this century to claim 50 combined match wins in Madrid, Rome and Roland-Garros, since the inaugural women's singles event at the Madrid Open in 2009.
Dominant Gauff double bagels Rus at Madrid Open
Coco Gauff made a flying start to her Madrid Open campaign on Thursday, recording the first double bagel main-draw win of her career as she cruised past Arantxa Rus to reach the round of 32.
Gauff needed just 51 minutes to see off 33-year-old Rus as she booked a meeting with Ukraine's Dayana Yamstremska for Saturday.
The US Open champion lost just 18 points throughout the match – eight in the opener and 10 in the second set – as she put any doubts over her recent form to bed in emphatic fashion.
Gauff's power proved too much for Rus in the opener, the third seed winning 88 per cent of points behind her first serve and converting three of four break points to go a set up in just 23 minutes.
Rus brought up four break points midway through the second set, but when she failed to convert them, Gauff punished her in ruthless fashion by reeling off another three games then finishing things with a terrific forehand winner.
Speaking after her win, the American said: "I played really well today. It was just one of those days for me… 6-0 6-0, I've never done that before, I'll probably never do it again."
Data Debrief: Gauff matches Azarenka, Halep feat
Gauff is just the third player to register a 6-0 6-0 win in the women's singles draw at the Madrid Open, following in the footsteps of two former world number ones in Victoria Azarenka and Simona Halep.
The American, who only turned 20 last month, is also the youngest player to double bagel an opponent in any main-draw match on the WTA Tour since Iga Swiatek did so against Karolina Pliskova in the 2021 Italian Open final in Rome.
Nadal cruises past teen Blanch to tee up De Minaur rematch in Madrid
Darwin Blanch presented little challenge for Rafael Nadal, who dropped just one game in a convincing 6-1 6-0 triumph at the Madrid Open.
Nadal is feeling his way back to fitness, but 16-year-old qualifier Blanch offered little resistance to the 22-time major champion on Thursday.
Making his farewell appearance at the Madrid Open, where he has won five titles, Nadal needed just 64 minutes to progress to round two.
"I think today I played against an opponent with a great future in front [of him], but today, still making mistakes," said Nadal.
"I just tried to be there, be solid all the time without taking a lot of risks. It worked well. I'm happy to be through and I wish him all the very best for the future."
Nadal's reward is a rematch with Alex de Minaur, who he lost to last week in Barcelona.
Data Debrief
This game saw the largest age gap (21 years, 117 days) between two opponents in the history of ATP Masters 1000 events.
Nadal has now registered 57 wins at the Madrid Open, which is 20 clear of any other player.
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