French Open 2025
Dates: 25 May-8 June Venue: Roland Garros
Coverage: Live radio commentaries across 5 Live Sport and BBC Sounds, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website and app
World number one Aryna Sabalenka produced another devastating display to reach the French Open fourth round and continue her pursuit of a first Paris title.
The three-time major winner stamped her authority on the match early on by winning the first five games against Serbia’s Olga Danilovic.
The 27-year-old Belarusian went on to complete a 6-2 6-3 victory on Court Philippe Chatrier to set up a meeting with American Amanda Anisimova.
Defending champion Iga Swiatek also secured a spot in the last 16 with a 6-2 7-5 victory over Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian.
Sabalenka, who has reached at least the quarter-finals at each of the past nine Grand Slams she has contested, has lost just 10 games in her first three matches in Paris.
Now in her 40th consecutive week as the top-ranked women’s player, Sabalenka thanked her team for helping to lay the foundations for her continuing success.
“When I am on court, I am a completely different person, very focused, very aggressive. On the court it is about dreams and I give my all on court,” she said in her on-court interview.
“Off court, it is important to surround yourself with the right people and have fun with your crew and that’s what I’m doing.
“I am really grateful to have all of them on my team, we are like family.”
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Sabalenka lost to Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva in the French Open quarter-finals last year after reaching the semi-finals in 2023.
The loss marked the first time Sabalenka did not reach the last four at a major since the 2022 US Open – highlighting the remarkable level of consistency she has achieved in the past four years.
Addressing her team after finishing runner-up to Madison Keys at the Australian Open in January, Sabalenka joked “as always, that’s your fault guys”, adding: “I don’t want to see you for the next week, I really hate you!”
But they – in addition to work with a psychologist and a biomechanics expert – have helped her transition from a player who served 428 double faults – 151 more than any other player – on the WTA Tour in 2022, to a title favourite wherever she competes.
Swiatek benefitting from Olympic experience
Swiatek breezed through the opening set against the unseeded Cristian in just 35 minutes, breaking at the first opportunity and repeating that feat in the eighth game to take the lead.
But world number 60 Cristian dug her heels in and proved much tougher to crack during the second set on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Poland’s Swiatek successfully defended six break points, having not faced a single one in the first set, before breaking at 6-5 to wrap up victory in one hour and 56 minutes.
Swiatek will face Kazakhstan’s 12th seed Elena Rybakina or Latvian 21st seed Jelena Ostapenko in the fourth round.
“It was 20 degrees when I played my first match but today it was 30 degrees. It is not easy to adjust but I have played in every condition,” said Swiatek.
“Last year at the Olympics it was super hot so I was ready for it. You need to change in different conditions, adjusting the equipment is the best way. I went one kilo up on both strings.”
The 23-year-old, who won bronze at the 2024 Paris Olympics, is known as the ‘Queen of Clay’ after winning four of the past five French Open titles.
Swiatek comfortably dispatched Britain’s Emma Raducanu in the second round but has endured a mixed clay-court swing – reaching the semi-finals of the Madrid Open but suffering early exits in Stuttgart and Rome – and has been facing questions about her form.
Elsewhere, Italian fourth seed Jasmine Paolini eased past Ukraine’s Yuliia Starodubtseva in a 6-4 6-1 victory.
Paolini, who reached the final at Roland Garros 12 months ago, could face another Ukrainian, Elena Svitolina, or American Bernarda Pera in the fourth round.
China’s Zheng Qinwen also continued her charge through the field with a third successive straight-set victory.
The eighth seed beat 18-year-old Grand Slam debutant Victoria Mboko of Canada 6-3 6-4 and will face Russian Liudmila Samsonova for a place in the quarter-finals.
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