On Tuesday night, Australian Kimberly Birrell produced a boilover in Paris, stunning fifth seed Jessica Pegula.
It’s the biggest upset of the tournament yet, on so many levels.
Pegula arrived at Roland Garros enjoying the best period of sustained form in her career. A semifinalist at the past two majors, she also won last month’s Charleston title on green clay and reached the quarterfinals in Rome. Of her 34 matches in 2026, she’d won 28.
Birrell, meanwhile, had lost her last seven matches on clay – a surface she has admitted to struggling on – and had never beaten a top-five player. She’d also lost to Pegula in the past year, when the American beat her in straight sets in Cincinnati.
Yet as the Queenslander revealed in this week’s episode of The Sit-Down, she has benefitted from her match-ups against the world’s best.
"I guess I've learned to respect them, of course, because what they've achieved is incredible and there's a reason why they're ranked where they are. But it's important to not beat yourself before stepping out onto the court,” said Birrell, who in 2026 has faced top-five opponents Amanda Anisimova and Elena Rybakina.
“They are also human, and there will be moments in the match where you do have a chance. The chances that you get are less often, and they're quite small, but you can take them.
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“I've had moments where I have taken them against players in the top 10. It's just having that belief within yourself, deep within, like, I can do this.
“Especially after my last match against Rybakina [in Dubai], in the first set I think I gave her too much credit – she played amazing as well – but I had moments in the second set where, I'm not saying I would have won, but it could have been closer.”
There were signs a big result was brewing for Birrell, who confirmed that with her 1-6 6-3 6-3 win over Pegula – so far the only top-10 seed to exit this year’s women’s draw at Roland Garros.
It marked Birrell’s first Grand Slam win since AO 2023, and first ever outside of Australia.
Birrell said she often experiences an upswing after facing a top player; it motivates her to hit the gym and practice harder with high-quality hitting partners.
“It shows you the yardstick,” she said, “and like, ooh, it's not as far away – it's far, but it's not as far as what I thought.”
And after losing to Rybakina, Birrell won nine of her next 12 matches, a run seeing her return to the top 70 having begun the season outside the top 100.
It was an impressive rebound, given this time last year she was in a self-described “lull”.
“Hadn't won too many matches, had clay and I just felt a little bit down, because I actually went into [the] clay [season] ... really pumped. I was actually genuinely excited,” she recalled.
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“I actually had some good matches and had sort of just lost a couple of really tight ones where I felt like I played well and put myself in a position to win, and didn't quite get there. And when that happens in consecutive weeks it can kind of weigh on you.
“By the time I got to French, I was just not feeling too confident with a few areas of my game.”
From a high of world No.60 in May 2025, Birrell’s swoon saw her fall to world No.117 by October, before a transformational week in Chennai where she reached the final and completely turned her fortunes around.
She returned to the top 100 – where she has remained almost every week since – to confirm her direct entry into Australian Open 2026, and had been thriving since.
She reached the semifinals in Adelaide and Austin, another 125K semifinal in Austin, and qualified in Miami – all before scoring her momentous triumph over Pegula.
"I don't know the exact stat, but I think it's very common for players to get into the top 100, and then to drop out after about a year,” Birrell said.
“So I am really proud that I was able to hang on and stay inside the cut for the Slams – that's just a huge goal. I think I don't often give myself praise, but for that, I am super proud, because it's not easy.
"Now when I play someone ranked inside the top 100, I have so much more belief that I can win, and compete, and it just comes from those runs on the board. Once you prove it to yourself, you just definitely feel much more comfortable, and knowing more of the girls, practising with more of them week in and week out, knowing how each tournament's run.”
Birrell’s ascent into the top 100 last year completely changed her schedule; she was automatically entering Grand Slam and WTA 1000 tournaments for the first time.
It was an eye-opening experience, and despite being 27 at the time, she felt as if she was a rookie player.
Her late-blooming rise came after her trajectory was interrupted by elbow issues, which led to surgery – and doubts whether she could play continuously enough to see how high she could go.
Hearteningly, she has since averaged around 70 matches, across all levels, in the past four completed seasons.
"My body is way more resilient than what I could have imagined as a kid, and I think I've surprised quite a few people to be honest,” Birrell said.
“It feels really good, especially with my elbow; there was a moment in time where I didn't think I was going to be able to serve again, and I still struggle with it a little bit, but it's exceeded my wildest dreams, really.
“When I even started back playing in 2022, I was sort of like, ‘let's just see what happens, I might just play a few more tournaments and then be done’. (laughter)
“So to now look back on the last few years, and how many matches I've been able to back up, day in and day out, it's really incredible. And it gave me a lot of perspective when I came back, and just enjoying myself so much more on tour.”
So what’s next for Birrell, and this feel-good story which has lit up the tournament in Paris?
Having surged 13 places to 70th in the live rankings, the Queenslander lines up against Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova for a shot at the third round, a Grand Slam stage she previously reached at Australian Open 2019.
More results like this will help her reach the goals she shared on The Sit-Down.
“I think I've been guilty of putting too much pressure on myself at the Slams, so I think this year, hopefully I can enjoy myself a little bit more and hopefully just play better at the Slams,” Birrell said.
"I think I can be in the top 50, I really do believe that. So I am gonna shoot for that -- even maybe say top 30. Why not? It's possible.”
Listen to the full episode of The Sit-Down, a weekly podcast released each Monday featuring an in-depth interview with a notable tennis identity. Subscribe in your favourite podcast player so you never miss an episode.