Alexei Popyrin emulates Lleyton Hewitt as drama erupts in tennis events at Paris Olympics

Alexei Popyrin has stunned the tennis world and has emulated icon Lleyton Hewitt as he defeated three-time grand slam champion Stan Wawrinka at the Olympics, while Coco Gauff's match ended in drama. Popyrin is carrying the Aussie flag in the men's singles competition after Novak Djokovic defeated Matt Ebden in round one and Alex de Minaur withdrew from the tournament due to injury.

And Popyrin faced a huge task in overcoming thee-time grand slam tennis champion Wawrinka on the Paris clay. Although the occasion didn't over awe the Aussie with Popyrin producing one of his best ever performances to defeat the Swiss star 6-4, 7-5 in a close straight sets win.

Popyrin managed to overcome the deadly one-handed backhand of Wawrinka in sweltering conditions as temperatures pushed well into the high-30s. "I think it's probably one of the hottest conditions I've ever played in - and I'm from Australia, so that's saying something," Popyrin said after the match.

"But it was really nice. Really good to get the win, and the crowd was amazing. They were cheering for Stan and he's a legend of our sport, so being able to get past him is a great plus to me."

Popyrin's win means he becomes the first Aussie male to emulate Hewitt's Olympic feat having reached the third round in Paris. Hewitt was the last Aussie male to reach the third round back in the 2012 London Games. Hewitt eventually lost to Djokovic in the third round in a tight three-set battle. Fans were full of praise for Popyrin as he prepares for his singles match against Alexander Zverev in Paris.

Alexei Popyrin thanks Lleyton Hewitt at Olympics

When told about the record and emulating Australia's team captain, Popyrin was full of praise for Hewitt and the guidance he has given him across the years. "That's pretty good. It's actually kind of special that he's also here helping me out," Popyrin added.

"I dedicate this win to my team also. It's a lot of work put in behind the scenes. It's really helped me out these last two weeks - and we're not done yet." Popyrin was buoyant about his chances of defeating Zverev, but admitted it would be a tough task due to the German's form on the clay after Roland Garros.

"I've played him (Zverev) twice before, and I know it's not going to be easy. I haven't beaten him, haven't gotten a set off him in two matches. He's one of the best in the world, so it's going to be a tough match for sure," Popyrin added. Zverev won the gold medal in singles at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

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While Popyrin is the only Aussie male left in the singles competition, he wasn't the only Australian to advance in the hot Paris conditions. Veteran doubles pair Matt Ebden and John Peers defeated Spain's Marcel Granollers and Pablo Carreno-Busta in straight sets as they continue their quest for an Olympic medal.

Unfortunately, Popyrin and de Minaur were eliminated from the doubles competition after losing to Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram in the second round. De Minaur was desperate to wear the green and gold in Paris, despite being injured, after he missed out on playing tennis at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Coco Gauff erupts over brutal chair umpire call

Meanwhile, USA hope Coco Gauff was left fuming at the chair umpire over a call that disrupted her rhythm in her loss to Donna Vekic. Gauff was trailing 4-2 in the second set when a ball was called out from the line judge. The chair umpire overruled the call and claimed it was in and because Gauff didn't return the ball, the point was awarded to Vekic.

This prompted an angry outburst from Gauff who claimed she didn't have a fair shot at the ball after it was called out. "I never argue these calls. But he called it out before I hit the ball," Gauff said to chair umpire Jaume Campistol. "It's not even a perception; it's the rules. I always have to advocate for myself."

She added: "It always happens here at the French Open to me. Every time. This is like the fourth, five time it's happened this year".

Gauff was clearly upset with the call, but didn't blame the result on the one moment. She lost the match 10 minutes later after trailing Vekic. Gauff blasted the fact tennis doesn't have replays on clay for the chair umpire as 'almost ridiculous' and advocated for the technology to be introduced into the sport on the surface.