French Open Day 7

Ah, there we go. After bemoaning the lack of upsets during the first week of the French Open, there were finally a couple of upsets - the two biggest were the top American males, in singles and doubles. Andy Roddick lost to Russian qualifier Teimuraz Gabashvili, in a match that showed how much Roddick does not like these conditions and how much harder it gets without proper preparation. On the one hand, it's a bad loss for the American, who had never lost to a qualifier in a grand slam before, and - to the best of my knowledge - hadn't lost to anyone outside of the top hundred. On the other, with no preparation and constantly being put first up on Suzanne Lenglen, it's not that much of a shock.

It was more of a surprise to see the Bryan brothers lose to the Brazilian duo Melo and Soares, as the Bryans were capable of breaking the record of most doubles titles won as a team here. So now there, only three Americans remain - Venus and Serena Williams, plus Robbie Ginepri. Yeah, you heard that right - Robbie Ginepri beat former champion Juan Carlos Ferrero in five sets, and that's much more of an upset than Roddick's loss. Ginepri was losing in challenger events earlier in the year and talking about whether or not his best year's are behind him. Now he's the last American male in the draw at the French open, playing against Novak Djokovic. Who could have guessed?

Really, Djokovic's quarter was decimated today - with Roddick, Ferrero, and also Ferrer all losing in upsets. Djokovic will now have to beat - at best - the 22nd seed to get to the semifinals. That's the only quarter that's been so thoroughly ripped to shreds - the other twelve players remaining are all seeds.

On the women's side, Serena managed to win, but just barely. If she's ill, it's going to be tough to come back on Monday. But the headline match - Justine Henin against Maria Sharapova - was suspended at one set all. It'll be interesting to see how that turns out.

The other action tomorrow is similarly exciting. As the top of the draw has been largely devoid of big upsets, the remaining players are all legitimate contenders. Federer plays Wawrinka, Tsonga plays Youzhny, Cilic plays Soderling, and Murray plays Berdych. Any of these matches could go either way - Federer is the biggest favorite, but the others are all almost too close to call. Suffice it to say, there's going to be a ton of big hitting from start to finish.

Dementieva is also in action, as is Venus Williams, who plays against Nadia Petrova. Maria Kirilenko plays Schiavone, and Pennetta plays Wozniacki. If the women's line-up is not as stellar as the men's, there are still some very good matches on offer.