A flustered Jelena Ostapenko became only the sixth female Grand Slam champion to fall at the first hurdle of her title defence on Sunday, 27 May, when she lost to Kateryna Kozlova at the French Open.
Never at ease on the Roland Garros main show court, the world number five slumped to a 7-5, 6-3 defeat to a Ukrainian opponent who had won both the pair's previous meetings.
Not since Anastasia Myskina went down in the opening round of the 2005 tournament has the French Open lost its women's champion so early, and the 20-year-old slipped off court, her head bowed, ruing what she called a "terrible day".
By losing, Ostapenko joins a ignominious group including Myskina, Steffi Graf, Jennifer Capriati, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Angelique Kerber who all lost as Grand Slam champions on the first run of their defences.
Kozlova, competing with a large, weeping blister on her heel which caused her to take a medical break at the end of the first set, was well worth the victory, playing with power and composure, in contrast to the flustered champion.
“Obviously, it feels great... I didn’t expect anything from the match. I just went to enjoy every moment on the court because, before, I was not sure if I will be able to play in French Open,” Kozlova said, citing a knee injury which had sidelined her.
"So I was just happy to be on court, back on court, and compete. So it was very important for me. And, in the end, the result comes up and it's just amazing."
Amazing for Kozlova, dismal for Ostapenko, whose eyes searched the coach's box at every opportunity. She seemed unable to find any answers to the questions Kozlova was posing, and checked out early with barely a whimper.
"It was terrible day," she told reporters afterwards, her pink cap pulled low over her eyes.
"Honestly today began not in a nice way and I knew something like that could happen, so I tried to stay positive. But...
I just woke up here and my mood was not amazing. few things go wrong and you are pissed off, but you try to stay positive. Then you lose a match, and it is no longer possible to be positive.Jelena Ostapenko
Ostapenko said she might have had a better chance had she been scheduled on Monday or Tuesday but that it had simply not been her day on Sunday.
"When I went on court today I had this unbelievable pressure, and felt I was not myself on court."
"I will just try to forget this as soon as I can."
It might appear lower-ranked players are becoming something of an Achilles' heel to the Latvian - already this year she had lost to two players outside the world's top 50. Kozlova, ranked 66, makes it an unhappy hat-trick for the 20-year-old.
No Deja-vu in Paris for Sorry Venus
What Venus Williams would have given for a dash of deja-vu in Paris on Sunday.
The same Grand Slam tournament, the same opening round, the same opponent as last year, but at Roland Garros this year the American slumped out 6-4, 7-5 to China's Wang Qiang.
The loss marked the first time 2002 runner-up Williams has lost her opening match here since 2001, and the only time in her career she has lost consecutive Grand Slam opening round matches.
"There really are no perfect days in tennis, so..." the 37-year-old mused enigmatically. "At this point I have just got to look forward.
"I just want to be my best, that is all... nobody plans on this."
If Sunday's result marked a low point for Venus, it represented the best win of Wang's career, and one for which she was good value.
Her comments post-match attempted to play it down, though, Wang saying only that the win had been "one of" the best of her career.
Wang might have been forgiven for rolling her eyes when the draw was made on Thursday, having been beaten by Williams both here and at Wimbledon in their only previous meetings.
But the 26-year-old set about her task with enthusiasm on a sun-bathed Court Suzanne Lenglen, never allowing her rangy opponent to settle.
Compact and busy, Wang looked to be putting more effort in every ball than Williams with her long fluid shots and languid movement.
And on a hot day which had both players glistening with sweat by the end of the opening game such differences can count double.
So too can free points and short ones, and both Wang and Williams looked to shorten rallies with heavily thumped groundstrokes aimed for the lines.
When faced with a wingspan like that of Williams, margin for error is miniscule, and Wang fired shot after shot onto the lines, killing off Williams's scooped, looped backhands with dead flat varieties of her own.
There was barely a wisp of wind to offer the overheating players any respite, but Wang, dressed all in black, never took a backward step, sealing the opening in the 10th game after a flurry of points including a drive-volley which left the increasingly frustrated Williams wrong-footed.
The double-fault that Williams hit to lose the first set may have been more indicative of her fortunes, as she struggled to get a good grasp on her game.
Williams has the air of someone who has seen it all, done it all, which, in tennis terms, is pretty much the case.
She eased her way into a 3-0 lead in the second set, but the smoke and mirrors couldn't mask the holes in her game with Wang taking the ball earlier and striking it with more purpose.
The Chinese was soon level and when Williams double-faulted again – for the fourth time – in the 11th game of the second set, it opened the door for Wang to record a notable win.
She did not need asking twice and sealed it, rather fittingly, when Williams clubbed her 35th unforced error into the net.
Beaming with joy, Wang waved to the crowd and skipped up and down as Williams stalked to the changing rooms.
Next up for Williams is Wimbledon, a tournament she has won five times, but not since 2008. A runners-up finish there last year will give her cause for hope, though.
"I have five weeks, so..." she smiled.
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