Rafael Nadal went down fighting on his favourite battleground a year ago, but this time his quest for an unprecedented 10th French Open title ended sitting glumly in front of a microphone.
With third-round action in full swing out on the Roland Garros claycourts, Nadal dropped a bombshell midway though a sunny afternoon when he announced he was withdrawing because of an injury to his left wrist.
"So there comes a time when I can't hit the ball anymore. I can't do this at all. I couldn't hit a single ball. I played the match with anaesthetics. I was ready to run the risk all the way to the limit, but there comes a time where you simply can't go on. Taking the decision to withdraw, to retire from a competition such as this one, which is the most important in my career, to reach that decision you can imagine how tough it was. So today I can tell you that I will not play before I have recovered entirely," Rafael Nadal said.
Nadal explains his reasons for pulling out of the French Open.
There is still some notable action, however, as second seed Andy Murray plays aginst Ivo Karlovic.
After gruelling five-setters in his first two rounds, Murray gives a masterclass in nullifying the game's biggest serve, breaking at the start of the opening set.
Murray is 5-1 up before Karlovic hitting the ball wide. The Britishman grabs the first set.
Murray, a three-time semi-finalist, forces the Croatian to hit the net and go up 4-2 in second.
Karlovic's unforced errors are as many as 21, and he gives Murray the second set 6-4.
Murray's progress slows in the third as Karlovic finds his range to force a tiebreak.
But Murray stays focused and the 27th seed sprays a forehand well wide. Murray wraps up a 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 and he will next face John Isner, another big server.
Defending men's champion Stan Wawrinka is in third round action against Jeremy Chardy. It is a fleeting moment. Wawrinka takes advantage of a poor service game from Chardy in the tenth game to take the first set 6-4.
There is no way back for Chardy after Warinka grabs the second set. Wawrinka serves on the match point, Chardy hits a forehand long and Wawrinka takes the match 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 was the final score in two hours and a minute.
Kei Nishikori is made to work by Fernando Verdasco before reaching the fourth round. The fifth seed serves at 1-1, 30-15 in the second set and takes the point with a drop shot.
The two splits the first four sets. But the Japanese star proves stronger in the decider, winning 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 2-6, 6-4 to set up a last 16 clash with Richard Gasquet.
In other matches, Milos Raonic was taken to a first set tie-break before beating Andrei Martin of Slovakia. The Canadian eighth seed will face unseeded Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas. The ninth seed Richard Gasquet beat the 17th seed in straight sets much to the delight of the home crowd. And John Isner needed five sets to defeat Teymuraz Gabashvili.
