Roland Garros | Alcaraz – Shapovalov 6:1, 6:4, 6:2, Alcaraz and Djokovic did not hesitate at the French Open, Pegula ends surprisingly

Twenty-nine-year-old Pegula already said goodbye to the clay Roland Garros as the fourth player in the Top 10 ranking in the opening week and the highest seed so far. The Buffalo native is still waiting to advance to her first Grand Slam semifinal.

The 20-year-old Alcaraz, who would like to follow compatriot Rafael Nadal on the Paris clay, swept Shapovalov in the opening set in 36 minutes. In the second set, the game evened out and the US Open champion even lost 1:4, but then he took over again. He won seven games in a row and took care of the ending. The Spaniard will face the Italian tennis player Lorenzo Musetti to advance to the quarterfinals.

The two-time winner of the Paris tournament, Djokovic fought with Davidovich for the opening two sets for almost three hours. In the second, he even saved a set point at 5:6, but in the end he won the even battle on Philippe Chatrier’s center court. He advanced to at least the 4th round of Roland Garros for the fourteenth time in a row.

“I knew it was going to be a very tough match. But a win is a win. The first two sets, three hours, and I thought if I lose the second one, we’ll probably play here for five hours. But you have to be ready for that. About there are grand slams, you play for three wins. You have to believe in yourself,” said the 36-year-old Serb in an on-court interview.

Aryna Sabalenková from Belarus will play her first round of 16 in Paris. The world number two and this year’s winner of the Australian Open defeated Russia’s Kamilla Rachimova 6:2, 6:2 and managed the third match at the tournament without losing a set. The native of Minsk has a chance to become the 29th world number one in WTA history after the tournament, which she will do if she wins the title regardless of the result of last year’s champion Iga Šwiatek from Poland.

After the match, Sabalenková skipped the press conference citing mental health issues. The Belarusian tennis player said through the organizers that she did not feel safe at Wednesday’s meeting with journalists, where she was also asked about the role of her homeland in the war in Ukraine. She received support from the organizers of Roland Garros and is not in danger of any penalty.

World No. 9 Darja Kasatkinová from Russia also made it to the round of 16. The conqueror of Markéta Vondroušová from the 2nd round outclassed American Peyton Stearns, who eliminated Kateřina Siniaková in the 1st round, 6:0, 6:1 in less than an hour.