The sun was back out in Paris on Wednesday. While some top seeds advanced in the draw, it did not shine on one notable contender.

Halep stunned

For the second time in three majors, third-seeded Simona Halep was eliminated by Mirjana Lucic-Baroni. After defeating the Romanian at the 2014 U. S. Open, she overpowered her on Wednesday, 7-5 6-1, on Suzanne-Lenglen Court.

It was a struggle throughout the match for the world No. 3 as the Croatian pushed her around the court and opened up a tight match in the second set. Lucic-Baroni kept Halep on the defensive and fired 29 winners while allowing only five off the racket of the 24-year-old. Attacking on Halep’s service games, Lucic-Baroni broke three times, twice in the second set.

The veteran was thrilled with the victory, “It's incredible, she's just a great champion and I respect her so much,” Lucic-Baroni said. “It's such a huge win.”

Halep, who reached the final at Roland Garros last year has not advanced past the quarterfinals in three consecutive majors. She answered questions regarding the pressure to succeed at Grand Slams after the match. “It's not about the pressure,” Halep stated. “I couldn't feel the game. So this is the reason. It's not the pressure, because I'm used to playing, and I have to defend points, so it's okay.”

Sharapova strides

With the third seed out, the path to the final became clearer for Maria Sharapova. The second seed defeated fellow Russian Vitalia Diatchenko, 6-3 6-1.

It was a solid performance by Sharapova, who quickly gained an advantage with her big, angled groundstrokes. She played a clean match with just eight unforced errors to go with 24 winners. Breaking Diatchenko five times, it became quick work for the defending champion.

Sharapova now turns her attention to Sam Stosur, who pushed her in a tough three-setter last year at Roland Garros. She had nothing but praise for the veteran Australian. “She is always a tough opponent,” Sharapova said. “She enjoys playing on clay and benefits a lot from this surface. It will be a tough match, but I have a pretty good record against her. I enjoy our matches. I hope I can continue that.”

Suarez Navarro advances

Carla Suarez Navarro kept her impressive 2015 campaign intact, advancing past Virginie Razzano on Wednesday. Razzano was forced to retire down 3-6 0-1 with what appeared to be an abdominal issue. After a few tight games early in the first set, Suarez Navarro successfully measured her opponent and won the next four games prior to her opponent’s retirement.

The Spaniard has won 12 of her last 15 matches on clay, which included a run to the final in Rome and quarterfinals in Madrid. She has defeated several elite players, including Halep, Eugenie Bouchard, Petra Kvitova, and Ana Ivanovic, during this stretch.

Next up for Suarez Navarro is Flavia Pennetta, who cruised past Magdalena Rybarikova in straight sets earlier.

Ivanovic struggles in victory

For the second consecutive match at Roland Garros, Ana Ivanovic was forced to overcome a one-set deficit to advance. The seventh seed defeated a quick and scrappy Misaki Doi of Japan, 3-6 6-3 6-4, but not without having to dig deep.

In the first set, the crafty left-hander dictated play, moving the tall Serb into awkward positions on the court and drawing 17 unforced errors. After gaining an early advantage, Doi closed out the set with confidence. However, in the second set, Ivanovic slowly found control of the match and on the strength of her inside-out forehand struck powerful winners that changed the momentum. Reducing her unforced errors, the 2008 French Open champion found a groove that she did not relinquish for the remainder of the match.

Ivanovic came into Paris flying under the radar, not mentioned often as a player who could make a deep run. However, after Halep and other seeds fell early, a favorable draw to at least the quarterfinals opened up. But she will need to play with more consistency than shown in her first two matches to accomplish her ultimate goal. Digging an early hole in matches as she moves forward is not a recipe for success at Roland Garros.