Sabalenka advances to French Open quarter-finals; Auger-Aliassime also moves on
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French Open 2026 LIVE: Aryna Sabalenka vs Naomi Osaka - scores, radio commentary & text updates
Sabalenka secures quarter-final spot
Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one, has advanced to the quarter-finals of the French Open for the fourth consecutive year, maintaining her record of not dropping a set in this year’s tournament. She secured her victory against fellow four-time major winner Naomi Osaka in a match that saw Sabalenka take the first set 7-5. This encounter marked the first women’s singles match to be scheduled in the French Open’s night-time slot since 2023.
Sabalenka expressed satisfaction with her performance, particularly highlighting her serve. She noted that while it wasn’t her best service game ever, it was her strongest in this tournament, indicating an improvement with each match. Her next opponent will be 25th seed Diana Shnaider.
The match was described as a high-quality contest, with Sabalenka demonstrating a relentless approach and variation in her game. She consistently targeted Osaka’s forehand during critical moments. Despite Osaka’s efforts, Sabalenka effectively closed out the match, earning two match points after Osaka double-faulted under pressure.
Sabalenka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, is still seeking her first French Open title after reaching last year’s final. She remains the only player among the top five seeds still competing and the only quarter-finalist with prior experience in a major final.
Auger-Aliassime progresses in men’s draw
Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, seeded fourth in the men’s draw, has also moved into the quarter-finals. He defeated Alejandro Tabilo of Chile with a 6-3, 7-5, 6-1 victory in the fourth round. Auger-Aliassime served 17 aces during the match on the clay courts of Roland Garros.
The 25-year-old Canadian broke Tabilo five times out of six opportunities, including three breaks during a six-game winning streak in the final set. He successfully saved all three break points he faced. This win improved his career record against Tabilo to 2-0.
Early upsets in the tournament, including the defeats of top seed Jannik Sinner, fifth seed Ben Shelton, and sixth seed Daniil Medvedev, have opened up Auger-Aliassime’s half of the draw. The draw also saw the third-round defeat of third seed Novak Djokovic and the absence of Carlos Alcaraz due to a wrist injury.
Auger-Aliassime’s next challenge will be against Italy’s Flavio Cobolli. Cobolli has a 2-0 career record against Auger-Aliassime, including a win at the 2024 National Bank Open. Cobolli has also secured wins against Medvedev and Alexander Zverev this clay season and reached the final of the BMW Open, where he lost to Shelton.
Should Auger-Aliassime advance to the semi-finals, potential opponents could include 19th seed Frances Tiafoe, former world number six Matteo Berrettini, and Matteo Arnaldi. Zverev, the second seed, is a potential opponent in the final.
Other notable results
In other men’s singles action, unseeded Italian Matteo Berrettini qualified for his first Grand Slam quarter-final since 2022 by winning in straight sets against Juan Manuel Cerundolo. Berrettini, a former world number six and Wimbledon finalist, is playing at Roland Garros for the first time in five years after a period of injury struggles.
His compatriot, 10th seed Flavio Cobolli, defeated American Zachary Svajda in four sets. On Court Suzanne-Lenglen, Frances Tiafoe drew level with Matteo Arnaldi after a lengthy second set that included three successive breaks of serve.
In the women’s draw, Anna Kalinskaya reached the last eight by beating Anastasia Potapova in a deciding-set tie-break. Diana Shnaider, who bageled Madison Keys in the third set, and Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska, who defeated Diane Parry, also advanced.
In the women’s doubles, Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski and Brazil’s Luisa Stefani, seeded fourth, moved into the quarter-finals with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Ulrikke Eikeri of Norway and Quinn Gleason of the United States. Dabrowski and Stefani converted four of eight break points and won 80% of their first-serve points. They will next face the 11th-seeded pair of Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva.
Serena Williams is set to return to tennis after an absence of nearly four years, participating in the doubles event at Queen’s next week.
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