Swiatek sweeps aside Svitolina to set up semis showdown with Sabalenka

Four-times champion Iga Swiatek of Poland swept aside Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina 6-1 7-5 on a windy day at the French Open on Tuesday to earn a semi-final spot and stay in the hunt for a record-breaking victory in Paris.

The 24-year-old, who accepted a one-month doping ban late last year, is looking to become the first woman in the professional era since 1968 to win four consecutive titles in Paris.

Although she failed to win a title going into the French Open this season, she looks to have rediscovered her remarkable claycourt form in Paris.

She will next play world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a mouth-watering semi-final after the Belarusian beat China’s Zheng Qinwen 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.

“I should have had better intensity in the beginning of the second set,” Swiatek said in a post-match interview. “When I saw my intensity go low I got it high again. I am happy I did it at the end of the set.

“Against Aryna it is always a challenge. She has a game for every surface. I have to do the work, be brave with my shots and go for it. She is having a great season.”

“I will not lie. It will be a tough match but am happy for the challenge,” she said.

The Pole is now on a 26-match winning streak at the French Open, following her title three-peat between 2022-24 to add to her 2020 crown.

Swiatek, playing in an initially sparsely filled Philipp Chatrier stadium, broke the Ukrainian, in her fifth quarter-final appearance in Paris, early and kept her on the back foot with her heavy top-spin forehand and rapid changes in pace and direction.

Svitolina desperately tried to hang on but she could not match her opponent’s power in rallies, sending a forehand into the net to hand her another break as Swiatek bagged the set on her serve in the next game. With her husband, French tennis player Gael Monfils, watching from the stands, Svitolina ignited hope among the crowd when she moved 5-4 up in the second set. Three unforced forehand errors in the next game, however, proved too many and Swiatek raced through the next three games to seal victory, firing three aces in the final game including one on match point.

Earlier, reigning US Open champion Sabalenka defied the windy conditions and Zheng to avenge her recent loss to the Chinese star in Rome.

“The last tournament I was pretty exhausted,” said Sabalenka.

“Today I was more fresh I was ready to battle.”

Sabalenka once again got the upper hand on Zheng, who had been on a winning streak of 10 matches on the Paris clay after her run to Olympic gold last year. Zheng broke and led 4-2 in the first set. But numerous unforced errors — 31 in total — allowed the Belarusian to come back.

The second set was also tight before Sabalenka broke back to lead 4-3, taking advantage of her opponent’s errors.

“I gave her the chance, so easy,” said Zheng, who has lost seven times in eight meetings to Sabalenka, including in last year’s Australian Open final.

Madrid Open champion Sabalenka feels she is ready to go all the way in Paris, where her previous best performance was reaching the semi-finals two years ago.

“It’s high-level matches. I’m super excited to go out there and to fight and to do everything I need to get the win,” said Sabalenka of her tie against Swiatek.

Meanwhile, Italian craftsman Lorenzo Musetti used his full palette of shots to decorate Court Philippe Chatrier with blistering baseline winners, beating American Frances Tiafoe 6-2 4-6 7-5 6-2 to reach the French Open semi-finals for the first time on Tuesday.

Musetti, who said he put some order in his mind and game, did not let frustration take the best of him after losing the second set and once he found his groove, there was no stopping him as 15th seed Tiafoe gradually lost the plot, twice arguing with the chair umpire over line calls.

He bowed out with yet another routine shot into the net, his ‘Big Foe’ neck chain dripping with sweat as a testimony of the battle just fought.

“Definitely Frances did not start the way he wanted but today was really complicated, it was so windy and difficult to mange to properly hit the ball,” said Musetti.

Agencies