Azarenka through with 48-minute 'double bagel'
French Open 2025
Dates: 25 May-8 June Venue: Roland Garros
Coverage: Live radio commentaries across 5 Live Sport and BBC Sounds, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website and app
Victoria Azarenka raced into the second round of the French Open with a 48-minute 'double bagel' victory over Belgium's Yanina Wickmayer.
At 35 years old, the Belarusian is the oldest player in the Open era to win a Grand Slam main-draw match 6-0 6-0.
She also becomes the first woman to score a Grand Slam double bagel - winning a match without dropping a game - in three different decades.
Wickmayer, who is currently ranked outside the world's top 1,000 and has said she will retire after Wimbledon this summer, held just one game point during the match.
Two-time major winner Azarenka hit 15 winners and won 49 of the 66 points on offer, while Wickmayer was undone by 26 unforced errors.
Only Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters - with six each - have won more Grand Slam matches with a 6-0 6-0 scoreline than Azarenka's five since 2000.
It was her first double bagel win at a major since the 2016 Australian Open.
Azarenka will either face former Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin or France's Varvara Gracheva in the next round.
Boulter and Fearnley earn maiden French Open wins
Alcaraz 'expected worse' at start of French Open title defence
Sinner overcomes late wobble to win Paris opener
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Djokovic cruises into record 19th French Open quarter-final
Novak Djokovic secured his 100th win at the French Open as he beat Cameron Norrie (ALAIN JOCARD) Novak Djokovic eased into a record-breaking 19th Roland Garros quarter-final with a comfortable straight-sets victory over Cameron Norrie on Monday. The three-time French Open champion will renew his rivalry with third seed Alexander Zverev in the last eight on Wednesday after seeing off Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 on Court Philippe Chatrier. Advertisement His tally of 19 quarter-final appearances at Roland Garros is the record for a single Grand Slam tournament. "I feel good. I know I can play better. But 12 sets played, 12 sets won, it's been solid so far," said the 38-year-old after his 100th French Open win. "It's great, but victory number 101 would be better. I'm very honoured... But I need to continue now." Djokovic holds an 8-5 winning record in his head-to-head with German Zverev, but retired injured from their last meeting in the Australian Open semi-finals in January. "He's 10 years younger. He calls himself a veteran of the game. What should I call myself, then?," Djokovic said of his next opponent. Advertisement Britain's Norrie, a former top-10 player now ranked 81st, has lost all six of his career matches against Djokovic. The sixth-seeded Djokovic showed no ill-effects from a "complicated" trip back to his hotel on Sunday night after attending Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League title celebrations at the Parc des Princes. PSG forward Ousmane Dembele presented the trophy to the crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier ahead of Djokovic's match. "They (security) were suggesting us at one point not to go back at all, to maybe find a place to sleep somewhere around here for a night, because at that point it was already past midnight and some gas bombs and cars under fire and stuff happening on the street that was really dangerous," Djokovic said. Advertisement "In the end we talked. We waited for a bit, and then we decided to go. Then it was fine. In the end we reached the hotel all good, but it was quite noisy with a lot of things happening outside of the hotel... "At some point it was getting out of hand, but it's understandable that people are so excited." The Serb, hoping to set a new outright record of 25 Grand Slam titles this week, dominated against Norrie from the start. He broke serve three times in a one-sided opening set, before battling through a closer second, crucially saving a break point before holding for a 3-2 lead. Norrie, playing in the second week in Paris for the first time, mustered little resistance in the third set as Djokovic wrapped up victory on his first match point. jc/ea
Washington Post
4 hours ago
- Washington Post
French Open: No. 1 Jannik Sinner dominates Andrey Rublev to reach the quarterfinals
PARIS — Top-ranked Jannik Sinner's latest dominant performance at the French Open was a 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 17 Andrey Rublev on Monday night to reach the quarterfinals and extend his Grand Slam winning streak to 18 matches. Sinner is a three-time major champion who won the U.S. Open last September and the Australian Open this January. Now he'll try to get to the semifinals at Roland-Garros for the second consecutive year and faces 62nd-ranked Alexander Bublik on Wednesday.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
'Didn't know what to do': Brit baffled by Bublik puzzle
Alexander Bublik continues to write the most amazing and unlikely story at the French Open, making Alex de Minaur's defeat by the crazy Kazakh look better by the day. Bublik's second-round win over ninth seed de Minaur left the Australian bereft and in the mood for a spot of self-blame, but he found himself in good company on Monday when British hotshot Jack Draper, the fifth seed, also simply couldn't handle his demise by drop shot from the inspired world No.62. "I didn't know what to do," admitted a flustered Draper, who'd been compared physically to a UFC fighter by Bublik but who was pummelled into submission by his stringbean adversary's fabulous shot-making. "I have a certain skill set to play tennis, and it worked marvellously today. One hundred percent, one of the best days of my life and one of the best matches I have ever played in my life. As simple as that," said Bublik, who's reached the quarter-final . He had had everyone laughing the previous round when he explained how a "hangover" trip to Las Vegas had been his way of escaping the pressures off too much hard training, the sort indulged in by what he felt were athletic "robots". And the father of a young son was quick to double down after his win over Draper that he's not prepared to sacrifice everything to push his tennis life to new levels. "There's no way around hard work — don't get me wrong, I work hard — but on my terms. Will I put my life and health on the line to have a "might"? Maybe? No," he affirmed. How to win a set Bublik style 😎#RolandGarros — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2025 "I will continue my path. I will work my way because I still practise, guys. I still do the exact minimum and maximum at the same time in order to be the player I am, to be in the position I am, and I will continue with this path because I think I prioritise tennis and life in equal ways." It sounds a refreshing approach but, frankly, he'll have to top even his recent miracles to down Jannik Sinner next as the Italian blitzed Andrey Rublev 6-1 6-3 6-4, making the world No.17 largely look like helpless fodder. He's not the first one to feel that way. The Italian has now marched to the last-eight without losing a set and for the loss of just 30 games. Who can beat him? Novak Djokovic doubtless fancies his chances as he ticked off another landmark in his peerless career, earning his 100th career French Open victory, a mark surpassed among men only by Rafael Nadal, as he demolished Briton Cam Norrie 6-2 6-3 6-2. Like Sinner, he still hasn't ceded a set and "everything is solid and positive", he declared. But it will start to get interesting next up when the record 25th grand-slam seeking Djokovic tackles last year's finalist, No.3 seed Alexander Zverev, who progressed when his Dutch opponent, Tallon Griekspoor, quit with abdominal trouble when 6-4 3-0 down. "He definitely knows how to play tennis. He definitely knows what it means to be on the big stage and to play big matches," Zverev said about Djokovic. "There is no doubt about that." Djokovic improved to 100-16 at the French Open, while Nadal, who retired at the end of last season, went an unbelievable 112-4 while winning 14 championships. "From now on I have the toughest draw in the tournament," Zverev said. "I'm looking forward to the battles ahead, and I'm looking forward to playing the best in the world."
