Roland-Garros: Swiatek into last 16, equals one of Evert’s record
Iga Swiatek beat Jaqueline Cristian 6-2, 7-5 on Friday and will face the winner of the match between Kazakh Elena Rybakina, the No 12 seed, and Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, the No 21 seed, in the next round
Iga Swiatek ( Julien Nouet / Tennis Majors)
Pole Iga Swiatek, the No 5 seed, defeated Romanian Jaqueline Cristian 6-2, 7-5 to move into the last 16 of Roland-Garros on Friday.
She has now equalled Chris Evert’s record of the most women’s singles main draw wins after their first 40 matches with a record of 38 wins and two losses. This is her 24th match win in a row at the tournament following her three successive titles between 2022 and 2024.
Swiatek capitalised on her break point opportunities, converting five out of nine (56 per cent). In contrast, Cristian managed to convert only two of four (50 per cent). Swiatek’s ability to seize these critical moments disrupted Cristian’s rhythm and contributed to her straight-sets victory.
Swiatek: “Happy that I stayed solid”
Swiatek’s return game was particularly effective. She won 45 per cent of points on Cristian’s first serve and 60 per cent on her second serve. This aggressive returning put Cristian under constant pressure and limited her ability to hold serve consistently.
“It was a nice match, and she really stepped up in the second set,” Swiatek said. “I had to step up, as well. It became an entertaining match. I’m happy that I stayed solid.”
Swiatek, ranked No 5, will face Kazakh Elena Rybakina, the No 12 seed who defeated Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, the No 21 seed, next.
Swiatek has not lost a set so far. In the previous rounds, the Pole won against Slovak Rebecca Sramkova (6-3, 6-3) and Emma Raducanu (6-1, 6-2).
Cristian, ranked No 60, won against Australian Kimberly Birrell (6-1, 6-0) and qualifier Sara Bejlek (1-6, 6-3, 6-3) earlier in the tournament.
Paris (Grand Slam), other third-round results (Roland-Garros, clay, EUR 56.352.000, most recent results first):
- Madison Keys vs. Sofia Kenin
- Marie Bouzkova vs. Coco Gauff
- Hailey Baptiste vs. Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
- Veronika Kudermetova vs. Ekaterina Alexandrova
- Elsa Jacquemot vs. Lois Boisson
- Marketa Vondrousova vs. Jessica Pegula
- Daria Kasatkina vs. Paula Badosa
- Mirra Andreeva vs. Yulia Putintseva
- Bernarda Pera vs. Elina Svitolina
- Jasmine Paolini vs. Yuliia Starodubtseva
- Elena Rybakina vs. Jelena Ostapenko
- Liudmila Samsonova (19) beat Dayana Yastremska: 6-2, 6-3
- Aryna Sabalenka (1) beat Olga Danilovic: 6-2, 6-3
- Qinwen Zheng (8) beat Victoria Mboko (Q): 6-3, 6-4
- Amanda Anisimova (16) beat Clara Tauson (22): 7-6 (4), 6-4
