Swiatek, Sabalenka stay perfect at French Open
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PARIS -- Defending champion Iga Swiatek joined No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the fourth round of the French Open on Friday and neither player has dropped a set.
Sabalenka, a three-time Grand Slam winner who has only once reached the semifinals at Roland-Garros, beat Olga Danilovic 6-2, 6-3 on Court Philippe-Chatrier, where the hot weather contrasted with previous days.
“The ball flies much faster,” Sabalenka said. “The bounces are much higher.”
Swiatek, who has won four of her five major titles at Roland-Garros, defeated Jaqueline Cristian 6-2, 7-5 on Court Suzanne-Lenglen to extend her French Open winning streak to 23 matches. A second set lasting 1 hour, 16 minutes, tested the Pole, who yelled in relief after winning on her second match point. Swiatek had 20 winners and 21 unforced errors.
“She used her chances and just went for it,” said Swiatek, who enjoyed temperatures which reached 84 degrees. “For sure I don’t mind. On clay it gives the balls the extra bounce.”
Defending men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz of Spain was in action later Friday. The No. 2-ranked Alcaraz faced Damir Dzumhur, who hurt his left knee during a fall in his second-round win.
What else happened at the French Open on Friday?
No. 4-seeded Jasmine Paolini, last year’s runner-up, beat Ukrainian Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-4, 6-1, and No. 12 Elena Rybakina won against 2017 champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen beat 18-year-old qualifier Victoria Mboko 6-3, 6-4, while No. 16 Amanda Anisimova and Liudmila Samsonova also advanced.
In men’s third-round play, No. 8 Lorenzo Musetti of Italy beat Mariano Navone, No. 10 Holger Rune of Denmark beat Frenchman Quentin Halys in five sets, and 12th-seeded American Tommy Paul did the same against No. 24 Karen Khachanov.
No. 15 Frances Tiafoe beat No. 23 Sebastian Korda 7-6 (6), 6-3, 6-4 in an all-American matchup, joining Paul and No. 13 Ben Shelton to give the U.S. three men in the French Open fourth round for the first time since 1995.
Who is on the schedule at Roland-Garros today?
Novak Djokovic plays in today’s night session much to his frustration as he hoped to play earlier so he could watch the Champions League final in Germany between Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan on TV.
The 24-time major winner, who recently won his 100th career title, faces qualifier Filip Misolic. If Djokovic wins quickly, though, he may be able to catch the end of the soccer final, which starts at 3 p.m. EDT. Or possibly extra time.
In remaining third-round men’s play, Alexander Zverev -- last year’s runner-up -- takes on Flavio Cobolli on Court Philippe-Chatrier, while No. 1 Jannik Sinner -- who beat Zverev in this year’s Australian Open final -- faces Jiri Lehecka on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.
Aryna Sabalenka serves to Olga Danilovic during their third-round match of the French Open at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris on Friday. (AP photo)
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis