Amelie Mauresmo's French Open hopes came to an end for another year as she lost 4-6 6-3 4-6 to 17-year-old Serbian Ana Ivanovic in the third round.
The third seed, who has never made it past the quarter-finals of her home Grand Slam, started nervously in front of an expectant crowd at Roland Garros.
After dropping the first set, she hit back from 3-1 down to take the second.
But Ivanovic held her nerve in the decider as Mauresmo surrendered the match with a double fault.
"It was one of the best matches I've played," said Ivanovic.
"Maybe not the best but still I'm really happy that I took my opportunities and I look forward to the next matches.
"The previous defeats have been more frustrating than this one"
"I played in the Australian Open on centre court but here it was a bit bigger, and I was really impressed.
"I was a little nervous at first but the atmosphere was great, I knew to expect it as she is a home player, but I just tried to stay calm."
Mauresmo had beaten Ivanovic three times already this year, but each time it had been harder for the 25-year-old.
She appeared to have weathered the storm when she reeled off three games in a row to take the second set.
But two double faults allowed Ivanovic, who is playing at Roland Garros for the first time, to break for a 3-1 lead.
Mauresmo broke straight back, but Ivanovic came out strongly after a brief medical break and her French opponent tightened up to hand her the victory.
"Of course, I wanted to go further in the tournament and it's a big disappointment to lose but the previous defeats have been more frustrating than this one," said Mauresmo.
"I always knew that she was going to be a tough opponent. She has improved a lot in the past months."