PARIS: Zheng Qinwen ended Iga Swiatek’s 25-match unbeaten streak at Roland Garros on Thursday to become the first Chinese player to reach an Olympic Games singles final as Carlos Alcaraz marched closer to a showdown with Novak Djokovic.
Defending champion Alexander Zverev, however, crashed out, losing his quarter-final to a fired-up Lorenzo Musetti of Italy.
Seventh-ranked Zheng triumphed 6-2, 7-5 over world number one Swiatek and will face either Croatia’s Donna Vekic or Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia in the gold medal match.a“I feel more than just happy — happy isn’t enough to describe how I feel,” said Zheng, who had played back-to-back three-hour matches to make the semifinal.
“If you ask me to play another three hours for my country, I would. It was an amazing match. To beat Iga is not easy.”
Swiatek, a four-time French Open champion at Roland Garros, went into the match at a sweltering Court Philippe Chatrier having not lost in Paris since 2021.
The 23-year-old had also defeated Zheng in all of their six previous meetings.
However, she was hit off the court by the powerful 21-year-old Australian Open finalist who broke the Pole three times in the opening set.
Swiatek appeared restored by a 10-minute break and quickly stretched out to a 4-0 lead in the second set before Zheng battled back, retrieving both breaks for 4-4.
The Chinese star broke again for a 6-5 lead against the error-plagued Swiatek and claimed victory in the next game.
By making the final, Zheng is the first Chinese man or woman to reach an Olympic singles gold medal match, bettering the run of Li Na who finished fourth in the women’s event at Beijing in 2008.
China’s only Olympics tennis gold came thanks to Li Ting and Sun Tiantian in the women’s doubles at Athens in 2004.
Alcaraz, back at Roland Garros where he won a maiden French Open in June, became the youngest Olympic semifinalist since Djokovic in 2008.
The second seed saw off 13th-ranked Tommy Paul of the United States 6-3, 7-6 (9/7) after recovering from a break down in the second set and saving a set point in the tie-break.
“It’s all about the fight,” said Alcaraz, who was playing the day after he and Rafael Nadal suffered a heartbreaking doubles loss in what was probably the veteran’s final appearance at Roland Garros.
The 21-year-old will face either Casper Ruud or Felix Auger-Aliassime for a place in the final.
Wimbledon semifinalist Musetti stunned Zverev 7-5, 7-5 on the back of 20 winners as the 16th-ranked Italian continued his storming Olympics run.
The 22-year-old was playing a tour final in Umag in Croatia on Saturday night and only arrived in Paris on Sunday morning, just hours before his first-round clash.
Musetti has made the semifinals without dropping a set as he became the first Italian man to reach the singles semifinals since tennis returned to the Olympics in Seoul in 1988.
The Italian will face either top seed Djokovic, who beat him in the Wimbledon semifinals, or Stefanos Tsitsipas for a place in the gold medal match.
Djokovic, still seeking an elusive Olympic gold medal to add to his 24 Grand Slam titles, takes on Tsitsipas on the same court where in 2021 he battled back from two sets down to defeat the Greek in the French Open final.
The Serb has coasted through the first three rounds in Paris and will be buoyed by his 11-2 head-to-head record against Tsitsipas.
That run also included victory in the final of the 2023 Australian Open final while Tsitsipas’s last win over the Djokovic came back in 2019.
Paul will return to the courts later Thursday when he teams up with Taylor Fritz in a men’s doubles quarter-final which could mark the end of Andy Murray’s career.
Murray and Dan Evans will face the US third seeds for a place in the semifinals.
Murray, a former world number one and three-time Grand Slam singles champion, has already announced his intention to retire after the Olympics.
The 37-year-old and Evans have endured a roller-coaster Olympics so far, saving seven match points over two rounds.
Zheng stuns Swiatek at Olympics as Alcaraz closes in on Djokovic clash
https://arab.news/mduq8
Zheng stuns Swiatek at Olympics as Alcaraz closes in on Djokovic clash
- Defending champion Alexander Zverev, however, crashed out, losing his quarter-final to a fired-up Lorenzo Musetti of Italy
- Seventh-ranked Zheng triumphed 6-2, 7-5 over world number one Swiatek
Ukraine and Spain qualify for Billie Jean King Cup Finals
RADOM, Poland: Elina Svitolina sent Ukraine to the Billie Jean King Cup Finals for the first time with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Switzerland’s Jil Teichmann to level the countries’ qualifier 1-1 on Saturday.
It ensured Ukraine tops Group E to qualify for the tournament in Shenzhen in September. Switzerland needed a flawless record against Ukraine to progress. Ukraine went on to win 2-1.
Spain also secured its place in the finals after Jessica Bouzas Maneiro defeated Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-2 for an unassailable 2-0 lead in their meeting.
Bernarda Pera defeated Denmark’s Johanne Svendsen to give the United States a 2-0 lead in Group C. The US next faces host nation Slovakia on Sunday with the winner going through to the finals.
Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima saved two match points before beating Romania’s Anca Todoni 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-2 to win their meeting in Group A. It set up a decider against Canada on Sunday to determine which team qualifies for the finals.
Rybakina leads Kazakhstan to a 2-1 win over Australia in BJK Cup
- Czech Republic beat Brazil 2-1 in Ostrava in Group B, while the Netherlands cruised past Germany 3-0 in The Hague in Group F
- Poland, without French Open champion Iga Swiatek after the world No. 2 opted out of the tournament to focus on her training ahead of the clay season, beat Switzerland 3-0 in Radom
BRISBANE: Elena Rybakina showcased her prowess to beat Kimberly Birrell 6-3 7-6(4) as Kazakhstan secured a 2-1 win over Australia in their Billie Jean King Cup Group D qualifier in Brisbane on Thursday.
Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, went down an early break but cranked up her powerful forehand and drew level after six games before claiming the opening set with an ace.
Birrell raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set but squandered a set point and Rybakina clawed her way back with some ferocious shot-making to clinch victory in the tiebreak.
“It was such a difficult match,” said Rybakina, who secured her eighth victory in 10 singles matches since her debut in the competition in 2021.
“I’m super happy to bring the win for the team ... it’s always nice to be back in Australia.”
Earlier at the Pat Rafter Arena, Yulia Putintseva gave Kazakhstan an early lead with a 6-2 6-1 win over debutant Maya Joint.
However, Australia’s Storm Hunter and Ellen Perez claimed the third match of the night with a 6-3 6-4 victory over Anna Danilina and Zhibek Kulambayeva in the doubles.
Czech Republic beat Brazil 2-1 in Ostrava in Group B, while the Netherlands cruised past Germany 3-0 in The Hague in Group F.
Poland, without French Open champion Iga Swiatek after the world No. 2 opted to skip their Group E ties to focus on her training ahead of the clay season, beat Switzerland 3-0 in Radom.
Jessica Pegula and Danielle Collins were among a trio of players to withdraw from the US team, which plays Denmark on Saturday in Group C, for the three-day qualifiers.
Teams have been divided into six round-robin groups of three in the qualifiers this year with the winners joining hosts China and 2024 champions Italy at the Finals in Shenzhen toward the end of the season.
Alcaraz eases into Monte Carlo quarterfinals, Draper out
- Alexei Popyrin saved match points as he beat 2024 runner-up Casper Ruud and eighth-seeded Alex de Minaur dismantled ninth seed Daniil Medvedev in straight sets
- Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has won the tournament in three of the last four years, brushed aside Nuno Borges
MONTE CARLO, Principality of Monaco: Carlos Alcaraz cruised into the Monte Carlo Masters quarterfinals for the first time on Thursday with a straight-sets win over Daniel Altmaier.
British fifth seed Jack Draper was knocked out by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, while Lorenzo Musetti won an all-Italian duel against a limping Matteo Berrettini.
Elsewhere, Alexei Popyrin saved match points as he beat 2024 runner-up Casper Ruud and eighth-seeded Alex de Minaur dismantled ninth seed Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has won the tournament in three of the last four years, brushed aside Nuno Borges. Grigor Dimitrov ended the day by overcoming Alejandro Tabilo.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz brushed aside 84th-ranked German Altmaier 6-3, 6-1 to set up a last-eight clash with rising French star Arthur Fils on Friday.
“His (Fils’) level is really high right now,” said Alcaraz. “I saw a little bit from his match today, and he’s playing great.”
Alcaraz took some time to find his rhythm as Altmaier broke back to level at 3-3 in the first set, but it was one-way traffic from then on.
The second seed reeled off three straight games to take the first set before racing through the second in just over half an hour.
“At the beginning of the match, we played really long and tough rallies, really close games,” added Alcaraz.
The 21-year-old, the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion, is the favorite to lift the title this weekend after early exits for top seed Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic.
Alcaraz lost in his first match on his only previous appearance at the tournament in 2022.
Fils eased into his third successive Masters quarterfinal with a 6-2, 6-3 thrashing of 2023 champion Andrey Rublev.
The 20-year-old Fils is aiming to reach the semis of a Masters event for the first time, after losing in the last eight at both Indian Wells and the Miami Open this year.
“If it’s him, it’s going to be the first time I’m going to play him,” Fils said of meeting Alcaraz.
“It’s going to be a good experience. He’s a big champion. He won four Grand Slams already. I didn’t win a single one.”
Draper lost in three sets to Spaniard Davidovich Fokina.
Draper, who won the Indian Wells title last month, slipped to a 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4 loss as he failed to reach a first Masters quarterfinal on clay.
Davidovich Fokina edged a hard-fought opening set which featured three breaks of serve.
Draper let three break points slip away in the ninth game, with Davidovich Fokina taking his second set point.
In the second set Draper saved a match point and then leveled the contest in a tiebreak.
In a topsy-turvy third set, though, both broke twice inside the first six games.
Davidovich Fokina delivered the decisive blow in the 10th game to secure his first win over a top-10 opponent on clay since 2023.
Davidovich Fokina will take on Australian Popyrin in Friday’s quarterfinals.
Popyrin, the world No. 27, beat Ruud 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, after saving two match points at 3-5 in the third set.
Musetti, seeded 13, beat Davis Cup team-mate Berrettini 6-3, 6-3 and then talked of “the difficulty of playing a friend, a mate, a teammate.”
“This is a special court for me and also for Matteo. We share a lot of moments here in Monte Carlo where we live,” Musetti said. “Definitely one of the toughest challenges for me.”
Musetti will face sixth-seeded Tsitsipas who beat Borges 6-1, 6-1.
World No. 10 De Minaur crushed former US Open winner Medvedev 6-2, 6-2.
“I’m finding my feet on clay,” said De Minaur. “It’s taken me a while in my career. I can be dangerous on this surface.”
The Australian will play Dimitrov, after the 15th-seeded Bulgarian overcame Chilean Tabilo 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.
Djokovic upset by Tabilo in 2nd round, Alcaraz advances at Monte Carlo
- No. 13 Lorenzo Musetti beat Jiri Lehecka 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 to set up a last-16 match against fellow Italian Matteo Berrettini
- Daniil Medvedev overcame Alexandre Muller 7-6 (6), 5-7, 6-2, and fourth-seeded Casper Ruud beat Roberto Bautista Agut 6-2, 6-1
MONACO: Novak Djokovic’s latest bid to win a 100th career title ended in another upset defeat to a familiar face.
Alejandro Tabilo, who handed the 24-time Grand Slam champion a surprising loss at the Italian Open last year, beat Djokovic 6-3, 6-4 on Wednesday in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters.
Back on clay for the first time since winning the Olympic gold in Paris last August, Djokovic said he didn’t have high expectations going into the match.
“I knew I’m going to have a tough opponent and I knew I’m going to probably play pretty bad,” Djokovic said. “But this bad, I didn’t expect.”
Djokovic, who recently lost the Miami Open final to Jakub Mensik, turns 38 next month — shortly before the French Open starts on May 25.
French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz started his clay-court season by rallying for a 3-6, 6-0, 6-1 victory over Francisco Cerundolo.
The second-seeded Alcaraz was coming off a surprising loss to Belgian veteran David Goffin in his first match at the Miami Open.
Another upset seemed possible when Cerundolo, ranked No. 22, took the first set but Alcaraz dominated the rest of the match and converted five of his seven break points across the second and third sets.
Alcaraz is seeking a second title of 2025 and to finetune his clay-court game ahead of a bid to retain his title at Roland Garros starting next month.
Tabilo clinched victory on his second match point when Djokovic hit a service return too long.
Djokovic had saved one match point in the ninth game when he was trailing 5-3 and 30-40 on his serve, producing a neat drop shot over the net which his Chilean opponent couldn’t reach.
Other results
No. 13 Lorenzo Musetti beat Jiri Lehecka 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 to set up a last-16 match against fellow Italian Matteo Berrettini, who beat top-seeded Alexander Zverev on Tuesday.
Daniil Medvedev overcame Alexandre Muller 7-6 (6), 5-7, 6-2, and fourth-seeded Casper Ruud beat Roberto Bautista Agut 6-2, 6-1.
Richard Gasquet and Gael Monfils, a pair of 38-year-old Frenchman, were eliminated by Daniel Altmaier and seventh-seeded Andrey Rublev, respectively.
The Monte Carlo Masters is the first big clay-court tournament of the year on the ATP Tour.
Zverev crashes as Tsitsipas, Draper advance in Monte Carlo
- World No. 2 Zverev has struggled for any kind of form since his defeat by Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open final
- Berrettini has won 17 of his past 18 matches on clay
MONTE CARLO, Principality of Monaco: Top seed Alexander Zverev crashed out in his opening match of the Monte Carlo Masters on Tuesday falling to Italy’s Matteo Berrettini as defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas and Britain’s Jack Draper both advanced.
World No. 2 Zverev has struggled for any kind of form since his defeat by Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open final at the end of January, winning just six of 12 matches.
But with a first-round bye in the absence of world No. 1 Sinner, who is suspended for a doping violation until May 4, Zverev was among the favorites.
After a controlled start to the game, the German slumped to a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 defeat to 34th-ranked Berrettini, at the end of a high-flying match, which had included an impressive 48-stroke rally won by the Italian.
“It’s been the worst period since my injury (the) last few months,” said Zverev who has suffered a string of early exits of late, including at Indian Wells.
“I played a great first set, and once I got broken in the second set I play ten levels down. My ball is much slower. I stop hitting the ball.
“The same story the last few months. Nothing changes. So it’s me who lost the match, once again.
“I thought my level was terrible, but that’s just my opinion.”
Defending champion and three-time Monte Carlo winner Tsitsipas advanced past 38th-ranked Australian Jordan Thompson. After a lacklustre US tour, the Dubai winner won through 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in his second round tie.
Indian Wells champion Draper, seeded fifth, eased past 45th-ranked American Marcos Giron 6-1, 6-1.
Novak Djokovic — the winner in 2013 and 2015 — and Carlos Alcaraz start their campaigns on Wednesday.
Zverev won the first set against former Wimbledon runner-up Berrettini but a break of serve in the sixth game of the second set allowed the Italian to level the match.
Berrettini broke at 3-all in the final set before blowing a chance to close out victory on his own serve, but he broke again for a 6-5 lead after an astonishing 48-shot rally.
The 34th-ranked Berrettini made no mistake with his second opportunity though, advancing to a last-16 meeting with Lorenzo Musetti or Jiri Lehecka.
“The game plan was the same but I changed my attitude and the way I was believing in my strokes,” Berrettini said.
“I told myself to be more aggressive and if I am going to lose this match, I am going to do the right things and luckily it worked.”
Berrettini has won 17 of his past 18 matches on clay. Last season, he captured clay-court titles in Marrakech, Gstaad and Kitzbuehel. However, he hasn’t played at the French Open since 2021 due to injuries.
“I have missed the biggest tournament on clay for the past three years and that was tough and now I want to enjoy it. I feel really comfortable on clay,” said the former world number six.
For Zverev, last year’s Roland Garros runner-up, it was another disappointing outcome on clay after quarter-final exits in Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro. His next tournament will be on home soil in Munich.
Meanwhile Tsitsipas let a 5-2 lead slip in the second set, before getting past Thompson to set up a third round meeting with either Portugal’s Nuno Borges or Spaniard Pedro Martinez.
“I really didn’t know what to expect, you don’t know what your opponent is capable of,” said Tsitsipas.
“He showed a good first set, he seemed to be playing quite reserved and wasn’t giving me much to work with. I was just trying to find something to reignite that consistency within my game.”
Dane Holger Rune, the 10th seed, retired due to illness against Portugal’s Nuno Borges.
Rune, the Monte Carlo runner-up in 2023, called for the doctor after losing the opening set before shaking hands with his opponent while trailing 6-2, 3-0.
Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, a two-time Monte Carlo semifinalist, defeated Chilean Nicolas Jarry 6-3, 6-4, on his seventh match point.
