Popyrin advances at French Open as Tomljanović departs in second round

Australia Broadcast Center

28-05-2025

Alexei Popyrin has reached the third round of the French Open for the first time, becoming the first Australian into the last 32 on a drizzly day in Paris.
Popyrin conquered Chile's Alejandro Tabilo 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 to set up a third-round date with Portugal's Nuno Borges.
Borges advanced after defeating two-time finalist and seventh seed Casper Ruud 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-0.
Popyrin was all smiles after delivering a solid performance against Tabilo.
"I've always had that confidence. On my day I can beat anybody, but that's not important to me," Popyrin said.
"What's important to me is bringing a consistent level day in, day out. That's what I've struggled with in the past."
Fellow Australian Ajla Tomljanović failed to progress from the second round after recording a 6-3, 6-3 loss to 2024 finalist Jasmine Paolini.
"I didn't find my 'A' game. It was a tough performance out there," Tomljanović said.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka started off on the wrong foot before dismissing Swiss Jil Teichmann 6-3, 6-1.
Left-hander Teichmann troubled Sabalenka throughout the early part of the opening set but the top seed composed herself and pulled level at 3-3.
Sabalenka broke her unseeded opponent again in the eighth game and then took control of the match.
"She started really well and played her best game. It's always tricky against her," Sabalenka said.
Sabalenka next faces Olga Danilović, who beat Danielle Collins 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
Iga Świątek, chasing a fourth straight women's singles crown, made light work of Emma Raducanu with a 6-1, 6-2 victory to stretch her winning run in Paris to 23 consecutive matches.
Defending men's champion Carlos Alcaraz sealed a 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 win over unseeded Hungarian Fábián Marozsán.
But former French Open finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas posted a shock second-round loss to Italian qualifier Matteo Gigante, who triumphed 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.
Reuters/AAP