World number one Aryna Sabalenka moved a step closer to a maiden French Open title by taking out four-time champion Iga Swiatek in a blockbuster semi-final. Belarus’ Sabalenka earned a 7-6 (7-1) 4-6 6-0 victory to end fifth seed Swiatek’s 26-match winning run at the tournament. After a slow start on the Roland Garros clay,...
Three-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka replaced Swiatek at the top of the rankings last year and has opened a commanding lead over her rivals this season. With 39 wins from 45 matches, her powerful style transcends all surfaces and is backed up by an unparalleled consistency. Sabalenka, who has won three WTA titles this year,...
World number one Aryna Sabalenka edged a tight encounter against Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen to reach the French Open semi-finals. Sabalenka, bidding for a first Paris title, won 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 against China’s Zheng on a blustery Court Phillippe Chatrier. The Belarusian – arguably the favourite for the title – had to come back from...
Svitolina produced a superb fightback to upset last year’s finalist Paolini, saving three match points before winning the second set and taking control in the third. Italian Paolini had a breakthrough year in 2024, reaching the French Open and Wimbledon finals and was regarded a title contender in Paris. The 29-year-old came into the tournament...
Emma Raducanu’s miserable record against Iga Swiatek continued as she was outclassed by the defending champion in their French Open second-round meeting. The British number two was beaten 6-1 6-2 on the Paris clay and has now lost all five of her matches against the five-time Grand Slam winner. It was another reminder of the...
Raducanu has had little joy against Swiatek. The 2021 US Open champion has lost all four of their previous meetings – twice on indoor clay in Stuttgart, and twice on hard courts at Indian Wells and this year’s Australian Open. The 6-1 6-0 defeat in Melbourne was particularly chastening, with Swiatek’s groundstrokes proving too powerful...
Victory was yet another illustration of Raducanu’s improved resilience. Raducanu has previously been accused of not showing enough determination to get through matches where she is not feeling 100% physically. Before the tournament the former world number 10 also described how she had felt pressured by previous coaches into playing when she knew she was...
The 23-year-old – who will bid for a fifth title in six years at the French Open later this month – has reached at least the quarter-finals of her previous eight tournaments, but is yet to win a trophy this season. Japan’s Naomi Osaka continued her fine run of form on clay with a 2-6...
Coco Gauff produced a stunning display to thrash four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek 6-1 6-1 and reach the final of the Madrid Open. Gauff, 21, had never beaten her Polish opponent on clay before but took just 64 minutes to dispatch the world number two. American Gauff will play world number one Aryna Sabalenka...
Iga Swiatek avoided another shock defeat against Filipina teenager Alexandra Eala by fighting back to win their Madrid Open second-round match. World number two Swiatek, who was stunned by Eala in Miami last month, won 4-6 6-4 6-2 on the Spanish clay. Swiatek lost in the Stuttgart quarter-finals last week and, having received a bye...
Ostapenko is the first player to beat five-time major champion Swiatek on every surface – once on grass, four times on hard courts and now once on clay. Swiatek often struggles against Ostapenko’s powerful groundstrokes which rush her forehand and draw out the errors in her game. The Pole came into the match with an...
Iga Swiatek is set for a mammoth few months. The world number two is defending 4,195 points during the clay-court season after her astonishing 2024, which saw her win every tournament bar the Stuttgart Open. Even then, she reached the semi-finals. Poland’s Swiatek won both WTA 1,000 titles in Madrid and Italy, before picking up...
Coming from a country with little tennis pedigree, Eala is already accustomed to being a trailblazer for the Philippines – even though she is still a teenager. In 2021, she became the first Filipino to win a WTA Tour match and first to win a junior Grand Slam crown with the 2022 US Open title....
Swiatek recently spoke out about the emotional toil she has faced in recent months, having served a one-month ban for a doping offence and not wanting to “step on the court”. Since the incident at the weekend, the second seed has gone on to reach the Miami Open quarter-finals, where she faces Filipino teenager Alexandra...