Elina Svitolina eliminates Caroline Garcia in lopsided victory at the French Open

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Elina Svitolina made it a tough day for her opponent and get into the quarterfinals at the French Open Sunday. A straight-sets dictation against Caroline Garcia who managed a couple service games ended in a 6-1, 6-3 result on Philippe Chatrier Court at Roland Garros. It became the third quarterfinal advance for the Ukrainian, in what was her best performance of the tournament to date. 

This marked the fifth meeting between the two and the second straight matchup on clay. Garcia dug in against the Ukrainian back in Stuttgart two years ago, beating Svitolina in three sets. Their journey to the round of 16 had been opposite as Svitolina got the slightly easier path while Garcia had a few big opponents to deal with. The one that cost her the most trouble was Elise Mertens who had her beat 6-1 in the opening set but lost the next two. With one full match under her belt, and three of four played that way with the third seed she was okay playing another. 

Svitolina took three minutes to score the first break of the match, showing plenty of energy to take on the Frenchwoman. Garcia had her signature slow start that gave Svitolina the easy hold in the second. She fell behind on serve in the third but fought to come back. It was an error into the net that marked her seventh of the set and a double break for the Ukrainian. Of the last 16 points, Svitolina won 12 of them showing a one-way path for the third seed. 

She served for a 4-0 run but ran behind quickly against Garcia. Forcing deuce was her way back, leading two into a fight for the AD point. After three breaks, and two blown chances to get the hold, Garcia went on to make her third breakpoint the charm to end the shutout. Svitolina answered with a break back in the fifth and put together a serve to love gaining a 5-1 footing. The third seed dominated Garcia in the seventh, reaching three set points. She lost one of them on an error but closed out the French star in 26 minutes. The Ukrainian dominated in the set, outscoring Garcia 27-13 that was assisted by the French star’s 18 unforced errors. 

Svitolina opened the second with a fast start of her service hoping to keep the pace high against Garcia. On her serve in the second, Garcia struggled to keep up but instead handed Svitolina her ninth break point of the match. Though she saved it with a good lob to force deuce, she failed to get an AD point chance losing a fifth service game. A need to get into the set was essential for Garcia who dug deep to find some energy and play a solid return game that produced a break back of Svitolina. 

Her attempt to consolidate started out foul with three break points going to the third seed on errors. The Ukrainian scored the sixth break of the match opening the gap on Garcia who couldn’t limit the problems. Svitolina let up a little in the fifth, bringing Garcia to deuce but an ace helped her reach the AD point before scoring a second serve winner to move up 4-1. Garcia etched out an important hold that cut the lead in half for Svitolina, who sat two-game from the match. 

She moved to one after easily getting through the sixth with a pair of winners and unforced errors from the French hopeful. In her efforts to save the match, Garcia gave up one point before holding serve for a third win. The third seed was back to serve in the ninth, serving up to Garcia for the match. She erred twice from the backhand but Garcia erred as well. At 30-all, the third seed scored on a long ball from the Frenchwoman, earning match point. Garcia notched her 34th unforced error to end a heartbreaker in 63 minutes.

"It was not easy for both of us," Svitolina said to Marion Bartoli after the match. "I think it was really important for us to get into the consideration that it was really windy and try to close out the game as quick as possible and whoever adjusted the quickest and I was happy that it was me today."

Danielle Collins upsets Garbine Muguruza in three sets at the French Open

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Danielle Collins fought till the bitter end and somehow came through with a win at the French Open late Saturday night. The unseeded American overtook Garbine Muguruza in the opening set and overtook her late in the decider to win 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 on Philippe Chatrier Court at Roland Garros. 

The two played on clay courts of Rome where Muguruza handled the American in three sets. With some experience against the Spaniard, Collins had the opportunity to take her second set win from Rome and add more to the tone of upsetting the 11th seed. Her efforts needed plenty of gusto as Muguruza was on a tear through her second round, defeating Kristyna Pliskova. With her eyes set on returning to French Open glory, the 26-year-old knew that keeping Collins behind was a big element to her future success. 

Muguruza got the jump on the American gaining two break points before she rallied to force deuce on serve. They played three breaks, where the Spaniard produced points each time to make the seal the break on Collins. They got three points in the second when rain forced play to be suspended. Tournament organizers chose to move the match to Phillippe Chatrier which was closed. 

When play resumed, Muguruza stayed ahead in the second to maintain service and a 2-0 lead. A fight to make it three in a row was trounced by Collins who battled Muguruza back on serve. Needing time on deuce to get it done, the American denied her opponent an AD point break and locked it down on the second break. The Spaniard had problems with the first serve, handing Collins free points to even the score after four. She added a third straight win, gaining not only momentum but a focus to stay ahead of the 11th seed. 

She remained that way into the ninth when a solid hold made it 5-4 with Muguruza fighting to extend the set or face a deficit. She pressed the set further with a serve to love in the tenth, showing Collins that she wasn’t going to let up. The American answered back with a stronghold in the eleventh and went for it against the struggling Spaniard. Having won the last five points, Collins took advantage of some errors in her opponent’s game and stole the break to win in 61 minutes. It was the 20th unforced error committed by the 11th seed who knew during the break that she had to do better. 

A break to start the second set was a good statement from Muguruza who took the second to move around the court more. It earned her another 2-0 jump ahead of Collins who played the third like her life depended on it. The American played one break before smashing a winner across the court to hold serve. Going for the tie was another story as unforced errors crept into Collins’ game. Muguruza took advantage of those mistakes and blasted away at the American. It was quickly 4-1 for the 11th seed who wanted to keep her dictation going and force the match to the distance. 

Getting to 5-1 became difficult as the American fought through every point to force deuce, but not the AD point which Muguruza locked down on. When it came for her to serve the seventh, Collins recorded her second shutout, keeping her alive in the set. Once the Spaniard was back on serve, the 26-year-old rolled to victory, taking 33 minutes to be back on top with her actions. Her serve at 78 percent produced 11 winners and only four unforced errors. Collins had nearly four times as many indicating that her trailing could get worse. 

Another win for Muguruza to start the third had her winning seven of the last nine games played. She rolled along, taking advantage of a frustrated Collins, opening herself a 3-0 run. The American tried putting a stop to it after suffering a double break, pushing Muguruza to deuce. After six minutes of fighting through 13 points, Collins scores the break back to end her downfall. Despite committing her sixth double fault, the American added a second straight against Muguruza. 

While it looked as if Collins had found ground to dig in, Muguruza took the shovel away denying her the break in the sixth. Collins went on to hold the seventh making her mission to play every single point as the finish line closed in. It worked out for Collins who fought on deuce to break Muguruza and consolidate it with a hold in the ninth. With a shot at pulling off the upset, Collins got the first point on a double fault from the 11th seed. 

A battle at the net for the third point put Collins in front and another double fault from the Spaniard brought the American two match points. After putting together a great start, Collins got the job done as she watched Muguruza return a popped fly that fell wide of the line ending her tournament in 2 hours and 26 minutes.

Paula Badosa continues her run of upsets with the KO to Jelena Ostapenko at the French Open

Embed from Getty Images Jelena Ostapenko let her entire game go to pieces at the French Open. Despite her late surge of good luck, a majority was with 22-year-old Paula Badosa who won 6-4, 6-3 on Simonne Mathieu Court at Roland Garros. It was an upset that many thought would go to three sets but a one-way run from the Spaniard made it easy to continue her hot streak. 

The Spaniard season at Grand Slams had been her best to date, making it to the second round at the Australian Open. With another move deep into a slam tournament, the Spaniard had her work cut out for her, playing well against Sloane Stephens in a second three-set win. Ostapenko’s improvement this season gave her confidence to shoot for a second title in Paris but holding off her next opponent would continue to be a task for the 23-year-old. 

She found that out as Badosa worked out a terrific opening serve before adding a break to her score. She widened out to three break points before the Latvian came back to save two, but not a third. Ostapenko broke back in the third and held to level the score, getting out of an early hole. Badosa picked up where she left off, scoring the double break as Ostapenko’s double faults came into play. 

The Spaniard consolidated things in the sixth to regain her two gam margin. The Latvian tried to stay close with the 22-year-old but unforced errors from her end were scarcely made. It led to her taking control with a 5-3 hold. Ostapenko managed to hold a second service game, but the Spaniard continued her solid brand of tennis. Despite heavy opposition from the Latvian, she produced a total of four set points, getting the victory on an error from Ostapenko to complete 45 minutes. 

The 23-year-old screamed in frustration before the set break but came into the second with ferocity. Reaching 40-0, Ostapenko committed an error but put down a winner to take the first game. Sensing an opportunity during the second, Ostapenko screamed once more when she failed to counter on Badosa’s serve that leveled at one-all. Unforced errors rattled the 23-year-old, giving a free game and break to the Spaniard. She made it 3-1 with a solid hold, leading Ostapenko to have another verbal shout at herself. 

Badosa had the double break in hand, cruising to her goal of moving into the round of 16. Ostapenko tried to get out of her head and reel things in, doing so on deuce where the first AD point was due to a winner from the forehand. Two more from her came in the seventh, getting a jump on the Spaniard. Badosa went on serve, attempting to hold back the Latvian from overtaking her. 

A big hold from the 22-year-old put her in place to play for the match with Ostapenko down two games. A wild double fault from the Latvian caused a big crash in her offense as Badosa closed in on the victory. The Latvian had a couple big points to bring her to deuce but another double fault brought match point. An unforced error gave Badosa the coveted winner just as the rain was falling hard. It took the young Spaniard 1 hour and 22 minutes to defeat a former French Open champion, letting the tears fall from under a towel as she advanced into the sweet 16.

Elina Svitolina returns to the French Open second week in straight sets win over Ekatrina Alexandrova

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Elina Svitolina had to work hard for her third-round match but came out victorious at the French Open Friday. The third seed had a close fight to the finish line with Ekaterina Alexandrova who fell in the final moments to win 6-4, 7-5 on Suzanne Lenglen Court at Roland Garros. The win marked the fourth time the Ukrainian that she made it to the second week and the first in three years. 

This marked the second time the Russian made the third round at the open. The 25-year-old earned her second consecutive trip to the round of 32 but faced a sizable opponent than last year. The Ukrainian thanked her lucky stars that she made it through after a dismal performance had added desperation to defeat Mexican rookie Renata Zarazura in three sets. Despite upsetting the birthday girl, advancement was the important key for the world number five, who wanted to improve her lack of competition. With a six-match winning streak and a title under her belt, the third seed looked to make it seven with a better output of control. 

Conditions were something to get used to as the clay dealt with rain earlier, making it tougher to slide around. Svitolina and Alexandrova struggled to adjust to that as the third seed battled her serve. She managed to hold serve on the break to set the bar for the 25-year-old. The Russian had a better outcome from her service game, avoiding deuce with Svitolina. She went after her again in the third, forcing deuce with a winner. The Ukrainian recovered, holding the first AD point to remain in the lead. 

The two remained on serve through eight games with Svitolina bringing the heat. After breaking Alexandrova in the ninth, the third seed delivered the first set knock out, scoring a serve to love that gave her the lead in 43 minutes. Despite two double faults and a second serve struggling to get above average, her control on serve was key to coming out in front of the Russian. Alexandrova’s 23 errors didn’t help her out, giving Svitolina the edge to continue her consistence. 

The third seed blew her opening serve in the second set but caused problems for Alexandrova who easily handed breakpoints to the Ukrainian. Though she saved one, the 25-year-old went down in the second, evening the score. They returned to serve with Svitolina maintaining a stronghold with her end while going after Alexandrova on hers. The Russian returned the favor in the fifth, forcing deuce with the Ukrainian, but failed to counter. 

The two had remained deadlocked with service holds that led to a five-all tie and a tough time for Svitolina who worked hard holding her own end. The Russian’s offense did so well to keep with the third see that a break chance in the 11th boiled her blood. Svitolina denied her and took the 6-5 lead. Alexandrova suddenly had the nerves running through her as she served to force a tiebreak. Svitolina made that moment very difficult for the Russian who produced errors and blew the serve to five the Ukrainian the win in 1 hour and 40 minutes. 

“It was not an easy match, Svitolina said to Marion Bartoli during her on-court interview. “Going into it, I knew she was hitting the ball hard and flat so I had to adjust and it was important to stay focused for every single point, dig deep and run for every single ball.” 

When asked about her move into the second week of action, the 26-year-old with three other previous times in competition had the experience to know. “It’s always really nice to be in the second week of a grand slam and to have a chance to go deep into the tournament,” she said. “It’s always the goal but for the slam especially. It’s different without the crowds so it’s really something you treasure in every slam that you play.”

Iga Swiatek overruns Eugenie Bouchard in straigh sets at the French Open

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Iga Swiatek impressed her skills once again at the French Open Friday. The 19-year-old brought her best to put down Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 on Simonne Mathieu Court at Roland Garros. The Pole had 30 winners and kept the unforced errors low to be the dictator of her third-round success. 

The Canadian showed her strengths in the three sets that Daria Gavrilova forced her into. With a lot of time on court during shutdowns, the 26-year-old eyed further advancement while playing well in Paris. While not having any experience against the Pole, Bouchard would rely on what she had tuned up to make it back to the second week of action since 2014. Swiatek was still unbeaten in her last four sets, giving one the indication that she would defend that streak or be in heavy competition with Bouchard. 

She opened service, breaking the Canadian and notched a hold to serve, giving Swiatek the early lead. Bouchard got on the board with a service hold in the third as she came from 15-40 to the first AD point won. A fight to bring her back to level pegging occurred in the fourth as Swiatek had offensive errors to produce her breakpoints. She turned it around with an ace before overcooking a shot, handing Bouchard a second break. Another return long sealed the win for the 26-year-old as she served to the Polish teen. 

Swiatek continued to lead with her hold in the fifth before going for a break in the following game. Opening a 40-15 run on the Canadian, the 19-year-old watched Bouchard swing her return into the net, giving her a two-game gap. Bouchard battled to hold her end, but the leverage remained with Swiatek who produced the winners that kept her out front after eight games. 

The 26-year-old served to extend the set but fell into a hole giving Swiatek set points. Bouchard saved one but caught a bad beat with her return hitting the net and bouncing out of bounds to end the first in 41 minutes. It was the eighth unforced error committed by Bouchard but the real beating she received was the 20 winners that Swiatek produced that gave her so much control. She served 64 percent for points on the first and won four of five from the net to go into the second with confidence. 

Swiatek continued on her merry way, opening the second with a hold of serve. Attacking Bouchard’s service game got the teen to deuce where chances for the break earned her a two-game margin. Bouchard’s second try on serve helped her lock it down and end the short winning streak for Swiatek. Consolidating her win with a break of the teen was a sign of good fortune for the Canadian, but managing the third win was not. Swiatek upped her defense to hold serve in the fifth against Bouchard who continued to trail. 

She suffered a break in the sixth, giving Swiatek the 4-2 lead that inched her closer to the match. With a grip on Bouchard, she went for a big hold in the seventh, allowing the Canadian a single point before hammering a crosscourt winner. In her attempts to save the end from coming, Bouchard instead gave Swiatek free points on her errors. Another one landing long brought up double match points for the teen who took her victory in 1 hour and 14 minutes with Bouchard’s return landing wide.

Garbine Muguruza rolls into round three with straight sets win over Kristyna Pliskova

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Garbine Muguruza was dominant on the court at the French Open Thursday. The Spaniard handled things well against Kristyna Pliskova who experienced a 6-3, 6-2 loss on Suzanne Lenglen Court at Roland Garros. 

The Spaniard faced only one of the Pliskova sisters ten times in her career but facing the other was something she never thought she’d get the chance to do. Luck would have it that Kristyna Pliskova was in her path and that she’d be the only one remaining in the tournament. Her second-seeded twin was knocked out by Jelena Ostapenko, allowing her to keep the family name on the clay courts in Paris. The win over Viktoria Kuzmova was an easy start to her run but facing the resurgent Muguruza proved a bigger challenge for the left-hander. 

Muguruza got the match underway and held serve. Pliskova locked her game down just as the rain began to fall on the court. Despite the small interruption, the two continued on with the third with Pliskova getting two breakpoints. She clinched the third on a backhand error from the 11th seed as the ball fell wide of the line. The Spaniard broke back in the fourth forcing the errors from Pliskova to force deuce and lob a winner to end a rally. 

Court placement and winners were the cast of Muguruza’s victory on serve in the fifth, giving her opponent a rough time on returns. A double fault didn’t help Pliskova’s efforts on serve, and with errors during rallies with Muguruza, the gap for her opponent widened. Muguruza held the seventh, giving Pliskova a single point. 

The 28-year-old rallied to hold serve for the first time since the second game, the effort was late coming as the Spaniard had most of the control. A near-flawless service in the ninth, notching back to back winners for the set in 32 minutes. The 11th seed played very well with her serve above 70 percent and outscoring Pliskova on winners while minimizing the unforced errors. With more momentum needed, the 28-year-old Czech needed to be strong from her offense. 

A hold of serve was the right path taken for the left-hander, but consolidating a break was out of the question from the Spaniard. She notched a serve to love before digging into another battle against Pliskova’s serve. They went to deuce for the second time in the set, playing six breaks where the Czech saved an AD point before getting hers locked for the lead. A service winner leveled Muguruza at two-all before breaking Pliskova which was the beginning of the end for the Czech. 

She couldn’t keep the unforced errors down, leading to Muguruza’s ascent of dominance to hold serve in the sixth. Another easy break gave her the comfort of serving for the match which came on three match points from an ace. The nail in Pliskova’s coffin came on a sliced winner to complete the victory in one hour and eight minutes. 

“I had to prepare because it’s the first time this year that I played a lefty so that’s interesting,” Muguruza said. “I had to be ready and with this temperature be super active.” She’ll bring more of that activity when she faces American Danielle Collins on Saturday.

Jelena Ostapenko sends second seeded Pliskova to the exits at the French Open

Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia in action during the second round at the 2020 Roland Garros Grand Slam tennis tournament

Jelena Ostapenko was back with her signature aggression that brought a massive win at the French Open Thursday. The 2017 champion played like one against second-seeded Karolina Pliskova who had nothing to respond with in a 6-4, 6-2 result on Philippe Chatrier Court at Roland Garros. It was her first time back on the court, pulling a huge upset in the tournament. 

The difficulty arose for the 23-year-old as she faced the Czech superstar for the sixth time. Having won twice against her with one back in 2019, Pliskova ran her on the clay courts of Stuttgart in three sets. With the anticipation of playing once more indoors due to foul Parisian weather, the Latvian had to use all the improvements made and dictate against the second seed. The 28-year-old had a tough one on her hands with Mayar Sherif going deep into a first set tiebreak. She managed to overcome the early defeat with quick wins in the next pair to face Ostapenko once more. As one who can handle clay, the battle between the two euro stars would be fierce. 

Ostapenko was first to break in the match, taking advantage of Pliskova’s mistakes. She couldn’t hold her own service, having committed a double fault that handed the break to the Czech. Up until the 13 points played, the second seed had yet to score a point. She got on the board but was forced to deuce, inevitably giving Ostapenko the double break. With three breaks of serve, Pliskova applied the pressure on the Latvian to hold service in the fifth, notching her second. 

The Czech consolidated her win with a break of Ostapenko to close the gap but watched it open back up with her first serve vulnerability. The 23-year-old went after her problems to break back and hold serve in the eighth. With a 5-3 hold, she earned the chance to play for the set but the second seed had other plans. Improving her offense at the right time, Pliskova landed a couple winners in the ninth, earning the serve to love. The Latvian refused to let her serve to get away from her and locked down the win over the second seed, who erred twice in the game to give in after 38 minutes. 

Ostapenko took all that was successful in the opening set and opened the second with a break to love of Pliskova. The Latvian then held off a push to deuce from the second seed to open the gap. The Czech got into the set with a hold of serve, giving just two points to her opponent. Despite the loss of full control, Ostapenko had it on serve, notching her second shutout of the match for a 3-1 lead. 

Pliskova’s first serve continued to rattle her as she notched a fourth double fault in the fifth but managed to hold after three breaks of deuce. With an hour of action in the books, Ostapenko had a 4-2 lead, adding another strong hold against the Czech. The seventh was a big moment for the former champion, who broke Pliskova with a winning return to sit 5-2 and balls in hand for the match. With two winners in the eighth (27 overall), Ostapenko had two match points but committed a double fault to bring Pliskova to deuce. Despite needing more time to get it done, she let the Czech err on the last point ending her day in one hour and nine minutes.