French Open results 2017: Novak Djokovic eliminated by Dominic Thiem; Murray, Nadal advance to semifinals

Novak Djokovic, the defending champion and second seed at the 2017 French Open, was upset in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, losing to Dominic Thiem in straight sets.

Thiem, the sixth seed, was a popular pick by experts prior to the start of play at Roland Garros. He made short work of Djokovic, winning, 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-0. Thiem now advances to the semifinals, where he faces Rafael Nadal, the “King of Clay.”

The last time Thiem played Nadal, he beat him in Rome two weeks ago. But he fell to Djokovic the next day.

”So far I have always played [a] way worse match the following day if I beat a top guy,” Thiem said. “So I hope I can improve that.”

Nadal, the fourth seed, is the favorite in the tournament. He had an easy quarterfinals, with No. 20 Pablo Carreno Busta retiring in the second set.

Third seed Stan Wawrinka bested seventh seed Marin Cilic, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1, and Andy Murray, the top seed, made it past Kei Nishikori, the eighth seed, in four sets, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(0), 6-1. Wawrinka and Murray will also meet in the semifinals.

On the women’s side, the top two seeds advanced on Wednesday as well. Karolina Pliskova, the second seed, bested No. 28 Caroline Garcia in straight sets, 7-6(3), 6-4. In the other match, No. 3 Simona Halep bested Elina Svitolina, the fifth seed, 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-0. Halep has been a popular pick by experts but she struggled against Svitolina on Wednesday.

Below are the results from Wednesday’s matches.

No. 1 Andy Murray def. No. 8 Kei Nishikori, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(0), 6-1
No. 6 Dominic Thiem def. No. 2 Novak Djokovic, 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-0
No. 3 Stan Wawrinka def. No. 7 Marin Cilic, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1
No. 4 Rafael Nadal def. No. 20 Pablo Carreno Busta, 6-2, 2-0 (retired)

No. 2 Karolina Pliskova def. No. 28 Caroline Garcia, 7-6(3), 6-4
No. 3 Simona Halep def. No. 5 Elina Svitolina, 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-0