Jannik Sinner eases past Lehecka to stay on track for first French Open title
Jannik Sinner continued his pursuit of a first French Open title as he eased into the fourth round at Roland Garros with a supreme 6-0, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic.
This is Sinner's second tournament since he returned from a three-month doping ban this month. After reaching the Italian Open final in Rome, losing to the reigning French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz, Sinner has continued to build on his form in Paris.
Related: Jack Draper beats João Fonseca in straight sets to reach French Open fourth round
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Sinner, the top seed, was in imperious form from the first ball as he rolled to a 6-0, 5-0 lead against Lehecka, a talented 23-year-old and a vicious shotmaker, before losing his first game of the match. Despite bulldozing a quality opponent, Sinner refused to entertain any complacency.
'This morning I felt that I was feeling the ball very good but, again, the conditions can change from one moment to the other,' he said. 'There was rain a little bit at some point, and then after it was nearly sunny. This changed how the ball bounces and how fast it goes through the air. Things can change so quickly from one day to the other. We saw this in Rome [after defeating Casper Ruud]. Nobody believed me, but in half an hour I lost the first set 6-1 [to Tommy Paul in the following match]. So I have to be very careful.'
Sinner was followed into the fourth round by Alexander Zverev, the third seed, who defeated Flavio Cobolli 6-2, 7-6 (4), 6-1. Arthur Fils, the 14th seed and France's best hope of winning a grand slam title in the near future, was forced to withdraw before his third-round match against Andrey Rublev after his incredible five-set comeback victory over Jaume Munar. On Saturday morning, the 20-year-old announced that he had been competing with a stress fracture in his back.
'I had some issues with the back since a long time, and during the match against Munar it got worse,' he said. 'Then I did some exams. The exams were not good at all: got a stress fracture. We decided with the team it was better to stop now, because if I stop now I could stop for only four to six weeks. If I push myself too much I would probably stop for a couple of months.'
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Mirra Andreeva maintained her status as one of the top contenders in Paris as she returned to the fourth round of the French Open with a comfortable 6-3, 6-1 win over Yulia Putintseva, the 32nd seed. Despite starting slowly in her first two rounds, Andreeva, who reached her first grand slam semi-final here last year, is yet to drop a set.
Andreeva will next face her friend Daria Kasatkina after the Australian overcame Paula Badosa, the 10th seed, 6-1, 7-5. Andreeva, a frequent guest on Kasatkina's popular tennis vlog with her ice skater girlfriend Natalia Zabiiako, was less complimentary about Kasatkina's interviewing abilities than her game.
'I think she can improve,' Andreeva said, smiling. 'No, honestly, of course, I think that it's very important that she finds a great timing to ask people questions, because when I took the camera from her in Rome and I started to ask some people, some of them were eating, some of them were on the phone, so I felt a little embarrassed. I think that she, of course, is doing a great job finding the right timing when to ask questions, and I think her and Natalia, they have a great kind of list of questions. They know what to ask, so it's entertaining and interesting. So, of course, I think she's OK.'
Jessica Pegula, the third seed, moved into the fourth round with a tough 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 win over the 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova.
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