‘He’s going to really hurt himself!’ – Awful moment injured Bagnis collapses while serving at French Open

Facundo Bagnis’ insistence on taking on Daniil Medvedev in the first round of the French Open despite being badly injured made for painful viewing.

Medvedev was afforded the perfect ease-in to begin his French Open campaign as he cruised to a hopelessly-easy victory over the stricken Argentine, who had his leg heavily strapped due to a very clear calf injury from the outset.

The chilly, overcast conditions on Court Suzanne-Lenglen at Roland-Garros were never going to come to the aid of the world No. 103, and Medvedev capitalised on his good fortune to secure his serene progress in Paris.

Perhaps the most painful moment for the fans to observe during a match that included a lot of wince-inducing points was when Bagnis collapsed under his own weight as he attempted a routine serve at 6-2 5-1 down at the end of the second set.

The 32-year-old from Rosario may have been utterly determined to finish the match, but it made for tough watching as he fell to the ground in visible agony due to his calf injury.

Eurosport commentator Sam Smith responded at the time: “Is he alright? That is not a good sign!

“He is going to really hurt himself if he keeps going! Goodness me, that leg did not stand up at all. He can’t land on it!”

Mark Petchey agreed: “Calves are notorious. I said it right at the start: they do not heal quickly and they get weaker once you have torn them once.

“This is not the smartest decision by Bagnis. I know there is a lot of money on the line, but this is genuinely not the smartest decision he has taken this week to play.

“This is swing and a miss stuff from Bagnis at the moment.”

Medvedev, who is the second seed in Paris, has the fortune of being in the bottom half of the draw at Roland-Garros with world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Australian Open champion Rafael Nadal and rising star Carlos Alcaraz all on the other side.

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