French Open: Elina Svitolina saves 3 match points to stun Jasmine Paolini
Last year's finalist Jasmine Paolini has dumped out in the fourth round of the French Open by a spirited Elina Svitolina, who saved three match points in the second set to secure a 4-6, 7-6, 6-1 win on Sunday, June 1. Paolini looked to be in cruise control after breezing the first set and looking destined for the win in the second one before Svitolina flipped the script on the Italian.advertisementThe match went on for two hours and 24 minutes as Svitolina pulled off a repeat performance from Australian Open, where she had beaten Paolini 2-6, 6-4, 6-0. This time, she came even closer to a loss before finding her way into the last eight. This is her 13th grand slam quarterfinal and her fifth at Roland Garros and fifth since coming from her maternity leave. She will now face the winner of the clash between Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina.French Open 2025, Day 8 Updates
Speaking after the win, Svitolina said that she was in disbelief that the match ended in her favour. The Ukrainian star said she was happy to have stayed composed and fought until the final point."I still cannot believe that this match finished my way," said Svitolina.advertisement"It was a really difficult match today, Jasmine was playing really well. It was really tough for me but I'm very happy I was able to stay composed and fight until the very last point."Svitolina dug deep in the second set where she was trailing 4-1 at one point with the crowd expecting Paolini to go through. She forced the set into a tiebreaker after saving three match points, including one in the breaker. In the third set, Svitolina was at her brilliant best and raced to a 4-0 lead, before serving to close out the game at the first time of asking. Svitolina was able to convert 7 out of the 13 break point opportunities presented to her during the game and served two aces throughout the contest.
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