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Straits Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Sabalenka, Alcaraz face US challengers in French Open round four
Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 30, 2025 Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in action during his third round match against Bosnia's Damir Dzumhur REUTERS/Denis Balibouse TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY FILE PHOTO: Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 30, 2025 Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka in action during her third round match against Serbia's Olga Danilovic REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo The French Open fourth round starts on Sunday with women's top seed Aryna Sabalenka and men's defending champion Carlos Alcaraz both facing American opponents, while Iga Swiatek continues her quest for a fourth straight women's singles title. TOP WOMEN'S MATCH: ARYNA SABALENKA V AMANDA ANISIMOVA Three-times Grand Slam champion Sabalenka has built up to her latest push for a maiden French Open title with a solid run of form in the clay season, winning the Madrid Open and reaching the finals of Stuttgart and Italian Opens. The 27-year-old is yet to drop a set and did not make a single double fault during Friday's win over Olga Danilovic. Her toughest test yet comes in the form of American 16th seed Anisimova, who has won five of their seven previous meetings. Former semi-finalist Anisimova is looking to become a top contender again after taking a break from tennis in 2023 over burnout and mental health concerns. "We're both pretty big hitters, so I'm sure we're going to be going at it back and forth a bit," the 23-year-old said. "She is number one.... I really enjoy the fight and the challenge that she brings on." TOP MEN'S MATCH: BEN SHELTON V CARLOS ALCARAZ American 12th seed Ben Shelton said he never played a match on red clay before 2023. The next year, he won his first title on the ATP tour on the surface, and now he has reached the French Open fourth round for the first time, against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz. "This is a challenge. Not my natural surface that I grew up playing on, but a surface I want to become great on," the 23-year-old Shelton said. No American has reached the French Open men's singles final since Andre Agassi in 1999. "This is a tournament that Americans have not had huge success in... I think this is a really cool opportunity for Americans. You do something big in an event like this, it really means something," he said. Shelton, who reached the Australian Open semi-finals this year, may prove to be a tough test for Alcaraz, who has dropped a set each in his last two matches. IGA SWIATEK FACES ELENA RYBAKINA TEST Four-times French Open champion Iga Swiatek could not keep a straight face when asked if she would prefer her fourth-round opponent to be Jelena Ostapenko, who beat the Polish fifth seed in all six of their previous matches, or Elena Rybakina. "Am I a good liar? Let's say it doesn't matter, really," Swiatek told reporters, smiling. "Oh, my God. I couldn't play poker." While Swiatek has avoided another clash with Ostapenko, her quest for a sixth Grand Slam title could face its biggest challenge yet against Kazakhstani 12th seed Rybakina. Rybakina beat Swiatek both times they met on clay, in 2023 and 2024, in the middle of Swiatek's dominant reign on the surface where she won successive French Open titles. Overall, they are tied on head-to-head after eight meetings. "Of course, she is very comfortable on these courts. But I think every day, every match is different," Rybakina said. FRENCH OPEN ORDER OF PLAY ON SUNDAY (prefix number denotes seeding): COURT PHILIPPE-CHATRIER (Play begins at 0900 GMT) 4-Jasmine Paolini (Italy) v 13-Elina Svitolina (Ukraine) 12-Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) v 5-Iga Swiatek (Poland) 13-Ben Shelton (U.S.) v 2-Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) 8-Lorenzo Musetti (Italy) v 10-Holger Rune (Denmark) COURT SUZANNE-LENGLEN (Play begins at 0900 GMT) 25-Alexei Popyrin (Australia) v 12-Tommy Paul (U.S.) 19-Liudmila Samsonova (Russia) v 8-Zheng Qinwen (China) 1-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) v 16-Amanda Anisimova (U.S.) 15-Frances Tiafoe (U.S.) v Daniel Altmaier (Germany) REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Draper downs Fonseca to reach the French Open last 16
Britain's Jack Draper proved too strong for Brazilian teenage sensation Joao Fonseca in the third round at Roland Garros on Saturday as he progressed to the last 16 in straight sets. The fifth seed produced a polished performance in seeing off the 18-year-old 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 in front of a Court Suzanne Lenglen which featured an audible core of Brazilian supporters. Advertisement "I played good, the conditions were quite difficult here," said Draper after reaching the second week for the first time at the French Open. "I thought the first set was key and I got on top of him a little bit. "Joao has caught the attention of players and fans here... I think he's got an unbelievably bright future and I think he'll be right at the top of the game," Draper added. Draper, the runner-up at the Madrid Open this season, will face Alexander Bublik for a spot in the quarter-finals, after the former world number 17 defeated 200th-ranked Henrique Rocha 7-5, 6-1, 6-2. Advertisement Draper eased ahead of Fonseca with an early break to lead 2-1 in the first set, before the world number five broke again and held service to clinch the opener. The Briton survived two break-back points while serving for the second set but managed to see out the tightly-contested frame when Fonseca dumped an attempted forehand winner into the net. Defeat in the 10th game of the second set seemed to deflate Fonseca as Draper immediately broke him twice to race into a 4-0 lead in the decider before serving out for the win. Draper now holds a 2-0 record over Fonseca, with their previous meeting ending in a straight-sets victory for the 23-year-old at Indian Wells earlier this year. That match was the start of Draper's successful run in the Californian desert, which culminated in his first Masters title. nf/ea
RTHK
2 days ago
- Sport
- RTHK
Draper downs Fonseca to reach the French Open last 16
Draper downs Fonseca to reach the French Open last 16 Britain's Jack Draper celebrates after winning his men's singles match against Brazil's Joao Fonseca at the Roland-Garros Complex in Paris. Photo: AFP Britain's Jack Draper proved too strong for Brazilian teenage sensation Joao Fonseca in the third round at Roland Garros on Saturday as he progressed to the last 16 in straight sets. The fifth seed produced a polished performance in seeing off the 18-year-old 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 in front of a Court Suzanne Lenglen which featured an audible core of Brazilian supporters. "I played good, the conditions were quite difficult here," said Draper after reaching the second week for the first time at the French Open. "I thought the first set was key and I got on top of him a little bit. "Joao has caught the attention of players and fans here... I think he's got an unbelievably bright future and I think he'll be right at the top of the game," Draper added. Draper, the runner-up at the Madrid Open this season, will face Alexander Bublik for a spot in the quarter-finals, after the former world number 17 defeated 200th-ranked Henrique Rocha 7-5, 6-1, 6-2. Draper eased ahead of Fonseca with an early break to lead 2-1 in the first set, before the world number five broke again and held service to clinch the opener. The Briton survived two break-back points while serving for the second set but managed to see out the tightly-contested frame when Fonseca dumped an attempted forehand winner into the net. Defeat in the 10th game of the second set seemed to deflate Fonseca as Draper immediately broke him twice to race into a 4-0 lead in the decider before serving out for the win. Draper now holds a 2-0 record over Fonseca, with their previous meeting ending in a straight-sets victory for the 23-year-old at Indian Wells earlier this year. That match was the start of Draper's successful run in the Californian desert, which culminated in his first Masters title. (AFP)
France 24
2 days ago
- Sport
- France 24
Draper downs Fonseca to reach the French Open last 16
The fifth seed produced a polished performance in seeing off the 18-year-old 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 in front of a Court Suzanne Lenglen which featured an audible core of Brazilian supporters. Draper, the runner-up at the Madrid Open this season, will next face former world number 17 Alexander Bublik or 200th-ranked Henrique Rocha for a spot in the quarter-finals. Draper eased ahead of Fonseca with an early break to lead 2-1 in the first set, before the world number five broke again and held service to clinch the opener. The Briton survived two break-back points while serving for the second set but managed to see out the tightly-contested frame when Fonseca dumped an attempted forehand winner into the net. Defeat in the 10th game of the second set seemed to deflate Fonseca as Draper immediately broke him twice to race into a 4-0 lead in the decider before serving out for the win. Draper now holds a 2-0 record over Fonseca, with their previous meeting ending in a straight-sets victory for the 23-year-old at Indian Wells earlier this year. That match was the start of Draper's successful run in the Californian desert, which culminated in his first Masters title.
Observer
2 days ago
- Sport
- Observer
Sabalenka, Zheng advance as Musetti battles into French Open last 16
Paris: Top women's seed Aryna Sabalenka and Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen eased into the French Open last 16 on Friday as Italy's Lorenzo Musetti rallied from a set down to book his ticket to the men's fourth round. Sabalenka produced a dominant display in a 6-2, 6-3 win over Serbian left-hander Olga Danilovic. "On the court it is about dreams and I give my all," said Madrid Open winner Sabalenka after beating her 34th-ranked rival in 79 minutes on the sun-drenched Court Philippe Chatrier. "Olga is a fighter. I enjoyed our battle and supper happy to be through this difficult match." The 27-year-old Belarusian next plays 16th-seeded American Amanda Anisimova for a place in the quarter-finals. Anisimova ousted Danish 22nd seed Clara Tauson 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 in their third-round tie. Zheng ended the run of Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko 6-3, 6-4. China's Qinwen returns to Mboko during day 6. — Reuters The Chinese eighth seed has now won nine successive matches at Roland Garros following her run to Olympic gold last year. "We had some really good points, it was not an easy match," said Zheng. "Today was a tough battle against Qinwen," said 18-year-old Grand Slam newcomer Mboko. "Lots of things to learn and hopefully come back to my next tournament with some more positives and improved on my game." Zheng is through to the fourth round in Paris for the second time and will next face Russian 19th seed Liudmila Samsonova who brushed aside Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska 6-2, 6-3. Zheng and Samsonova will both be bidding for a first Roland Garros quarter-final berth. Italy's Musetti in action during third round. — Reuters — Musetti fights on — Eighth seed Musetti won 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 against unseeded Argentine Mariano Navone in three hours and 25 minutes on Court Suzanne Lenglen. Musetti arrived in Paris as one of the form players in the world after backing up his runner-up finish in Monte Carlo with semi-final runs in Madrid and Rome. But the Italian dropped his first set in Paris against world number 97 Navone. "Honestly, today was completely different conditions from the last two matches," said Musetti. "I was a little bit surprised at the beginning, but happy and really proud of the comeback. "I've grown up a lot. A match like this I don't know if I would (have) come back a few years ago." Musetti, who reached the fourth round in Paris for the third time, next plays either 10th seed Holger Rune of Denmark or France's Quentin Halys for a place in the quarter-finals. — Alcaraz, Swiatek eye second week — Reigning men's champion Carlos Alcaraz bids to book his place in the last 16 later on Friday, with defending women's champion Iga Swiatek also in third-round action. Second seed Alcaraz eased through his opening two matches in Paris, despite dropping a set against Hungary's Fabian Marozsan. Next up is a third-round meeting in the night session with 69th-ranked Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, who has made the last 32 for the first time since 2018 but struggled with a knee injury during his win over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz is the title favourite at Roland Garros after securing the Monte Carlo Masters and Italian Open trophies in the build-up to the clay-court major. He has reached the second week in 10 of his last 11 Slam appearances. "If I lose the focus in Grand Slams, in matches (that are) the best-of-five, it's much better to refocus your attention," he said. "You have more time, you have more sets just to be back if you lose your focus a bit." The 22-year-old Spaniard would secure a match against either American 13th seed Ben Shelton or Italian surprise package Matteo Gigante with a victory. Four-time winner Swiatek has dispelled some of the doubts surrounding her form with two comprehensive wins and takes on unseeded Romanian Jaqueline Cristian on Court Suzanne Lenglen. "I have been feeling good and that's it," said Swiatek, hoping to become the first woman to win four successive Roland Garros titles since Suzanne Lenglen 102 years ago. Fourth seed Jasmine Paolini, the 2024 losing finalist, continues her campaign against Ukraine's Yuliia Starodubtseva, while Elina Svitolina targets a third straight last-16 appearance against American Bernarda Pera. — AFP
