Carlos Alcaraz shows sportsmanship in beating Ben Shelton, Iga Swiatek continues bid for fourth straight title
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When the official informed the Court Philippe-Chatrier crowd what had happened, Alcaraz was given a round of applause.
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This all happened at what could have been a critical moment, because instead of leading 40-30 on his serve, Alcaraz was now down 30-40, giving Shelton his first break point of the match. But Alcaraz saved that one — and five others in that 20-point game — along the way to taking a two-set lead in an entertaining matchup between a pair of 22-year-olds who hit the ball hard.
The 13th-seeded Shelton, twice a semifinalist at majors, delivered serves at up to 143 miles per hour and forehands at up to 116 m.p.h.. Alcaraz, already a four-time Grand Slam champion, showed off various parts of his repertoire.
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It was tighter than the score might indicate: Shelton held three opportunities to own the opening set, leading in the tiebreaker at 6-4, 6-5 and 7-6. Take any of the subsequent points, and Shelton would own that set.
But Alcaraz — who meets No. 12 Tommy Paul of the United States in the quarterfinals Tuesday — saved the first with a service winner. Shelton netted a backhand on the next. And the last ended with Shelton smacking a backhand right at the body of Alcaraz, who was up at the net and contorted himself in order to chop a drop volley winner.
Alcaraz then converted his second set point, closing a 15-stroke exchange with a down-the-line forehand that drew a mistake from Shelton.
The third set went to Shelton when Alcaraz put a forehand into the net, and the big-swinging American punched the air, then his chest, and screamed: 'Let's go, baby! Come on!'
The fourth swung Alcaraz's way when he used a drop shot winner to set up a break point that he claimed for a 2-1 edge and, after a total of 3 hours, 19 minutes, he was able to finish off an 11th consecutive win at Roland-Garros.
Swiatek beats Rybakina as four-peat bid continues
After a difficult start, Iga Swiatek hung in there until she could put together a 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 comeback over 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, extending her tournament winning streak to 25 matches and her bid for a record fourth consecutive championship at the clay-court major at Roland-Garros.
When she took the last two games and ended things with a forehand winner, Swiatek yelled, rocked back on her heels and put her fist to her chest.
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'I needed that kind of win to feel these feelings that I'm able to win under pressure,' Swiatek said. 'For sure, it's a great confirmation for me. ... I'm happy that I fought, and I also problem-solved.'
The big-serving Rybakina got off to a stunning start, leading 5-0 after less than 20 minutes and grabbing 24 of the initial 32 points. She was responsible for 10 of the match's first 12 winners.
'I knew that (to) continue like that,' Rybakina said, 'is not going to be easy.'
In the second set, Swiatek double-faulted to close the first game, then turned to her team in the stands with her palms up and said something; soon she was down 2-0. There was a game later in that set where she double-faulted three times.
'I don't think that happened before,' Swiatek said.
On Tuesday, Swiatek will play No. 13 Elina Svitolina, who is 0-4 in previous French Open quarterfinals. No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka faces No. 8 Zheng Qinwen in Tuesday's other women's match.
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