Unseeded American Zachary Svajda dedicated his French Open victory to his late father on what would have been his 61st birthday. The 23-year-old defeated Argentina's Francisco Cerundolo in a five-set thriller 6-3 6-4 3-6 4-6 6-3, advancing to the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time. Svajda, visibly emotional after the win, dropped to the clay and pointed to the sky in tribute.

Svajda's triumph came in one of eight men's singles third-round matches to go to five sets – a record in the Open era. The world number 85, who qualified automatically for Roland Garros despite having just one ATP Tour-level clay win this season, rose to 59th in the live rankings after the victory. He previously faced Novak Djokovic at the 2025 US Open after coming through qualifying.

The tournament has been marked by extraordinary endurance, with Cerundolo's brother Juan Manuel winning the third-longest match in Roland Garros history at five hours and 58 minutes. Only two players, Cobolli and Rublev, advanced in straight sets. "This is just outrageous," commentator Annabel Croft noted, praising the players' mental capacity during marathon matches that thrilled spectators.