Winds of change blow on day of upsets at French Open
PARIS — On a Sunday of upsets among the women at the French Open, revenge was a dish served up in an autumnal chill by a Polish teenager.
And it was only partially business as usual for the men, too. Rafael Nadal advanced, but his opponent in his 14th quarterfinal at Roland Garros will be dangerous debutant Jannik
Sinner. By making the men’s last eight as a newcomer, the 19-year-old Italian matched a feat last achieved by Nadal himself, in 2005, on his march to the first of his 12 titles in Paris.
So impressive has Sinner been on the clay that his 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win against U.S. Open finalist Alexander Zverev hardly seemed like an upset, despite the 68spot gulf separating them in tour rankings. Sinner pulled the sixth-seeded German this way and that with precision groundstrokes and unfurled his wingspan to make 21 winners at the net.
Zverev said he was sick, so feverish and short of breath that “I shouldn’t have played.”
Sinner said that from his side of the net, his opponent seemed “quite okay, you know, because in the third and fourth set he was running quite a lot.”
Against fourth-round foe Sebastian Korda, a 20-yearold qualifier who idolizes him so much that he named his cat “Rafa,” Nadal was — excuse the pun — practically purr-fect, winning 6-1, 6-1, 6-2.
Korda lapped it up. His long-term sights are set on winning at least two Grand Slam titles, one more than his dad, 1998 Australian
Open champion Petr Korda. In the meantime, the spanking from Nadal was “definitely the best moment of my life.”
“Super awesome,“he said. “I asked him for a signed shirt when we were tapping rackets and he said, ‘Yeah, no problem.’ So I have one in my bag right now. So I’m super stoked.”
Nadal has yet to drop a set in his pursuit of a 13th French Open crown that would be his 20th major title overall, tying Roger Federer’s record.
Although Nadal and Sinner have practiced together, their match will be the first between the 34year-old and the youngest man in a Grand Slam quarterfinal since Novak Djokovic in 2006.
“A big challenge,” Nadal said. “Amazing potential. He move the hand very quick and he’s able to produce amazing shots.”
That’s also true of the new generation making a mark in the women’s draw of this French Open where most everything feels unusual because of its coronavirus
enforced shift from MayJune. The golden leaves and cold of autumn have added to a sense of cyclical change.
Against the player who humbled her 6-1, 6-0 at the same stage last year, 19year-old Iga Swiatek turned the tables on top-seeded Simona Halep, sending the 2018 champion packing 6-1, 6-2 with powerful groundstrokes and exquisite net play to advance to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal.
Halep, who also lifted the title at Wimbledon last year, never got into her stride under the roof on Court Philippe Chatrier and was unable to exert any pressure on the now-confident Polish player who wilted with nerves in their fourthround meeting last year that was over in just 45 minutes.
Swiatek used that defeat as fuel.
“A huge lesson,” she said. “I knew that I can, like, play differently and I can finally show my best tennis.”
Halep lasted just 23 minutes longer this time. She never had a break point against her opponent who racked up 14 against her, breaking her twice in each set and keeping her serve under near-constant stress.
“She was everywhere,” said Halep, who had been on a career-best winning streak of 17 matches. “I will have a chocolate and I will be better tomorrow.”
That upset was followed by another moments later. Italian qualifier Martina Trevisan ousted fifth-seeded Kiki Bertens, winning 6-4, 6-4. Swiatek and Trevisan will now play each other in what will be a first Grand Slam quarterfinal for them both.
Argentinian qualifier Nadia Podoroska also advanced, beating Barbora Krejcikova, ranked No. 114, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3. The 131stranked Podoroska, who lost in the first round at her only previous Grand Slam, the U.S. Open in 2016, will face third-seeded Elina Svitolina from Ukraine. The semifinalist last year at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open advanced 6-1, 6-3 against Caroline Garcia of France.
Halep and Bertens had been among just six seeded women in round four. Sixth-seeded Serena Williams’ pursuit of a recordtying 24th major title ended with an Achilles injury after her first-round win. Week two’s crop of new faces speaks to the depth of women’s tennis.