French Open: Alcaraz Tackles Shelton For Spot In Quarters; Swiatek Faces Old Foe

Last Updated:June 01, 2025, 09:32 IST

Carlos Alcaraz takeson Ben Shelton for a French Open quarter-final spot as Iga Swiatek battles Elena Rybakina at Roland Garros.

Carlos Alcaraz at the French Open (AP)

Reigning Roland Garros champion Carlos Alcaraz will face the big-serving 13th seed Ben Shelton for a place in the French Open quarter-finals on Sunday. Meanwhile, four-time women’s champion Iga Swiatek prepares to battle former Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina.

Top seed Aryna Sabalenka will compete against past semi-finalist Amanda Anisimova, and fourth seed Jasmine Paolini is set to play against former world number three Elina Svitolina.

Lorenzo Musetti, who has reached at least the semi-finals in all the clay-court Masters events this season, will challenge Barcelona Open winner Holger Rune as the competition intensifies on both sides of the draw.

“Playing the defending champion, round of 16, centre court – that’s a pretty cool opportunity, a pretty cool experience that not a lot of people get or see in their lifetime," Shelton said about facing Alcaraz. “For me, I’m definitely going to enjoy it and go out there and see what I can do because I’m starting to see some of my best tennis. I like to think of myself as dangerous whenever I get to that place."

Alcaraz has won both of his previous meetings with Shelton in straight sets. However, the Spaniard has shown some signs of vulnerability at Roland Garros, dropping sets in his last two matches.

In his second-round win over Fabian Marozsan, Alcaraz admitted he “couldn’t handle" the 56th-ranked Hungarian’s level at times, losing the second set 6-

After winning his third-round match against 69th-ranked Bosnian Damir Dzumhur on Friday, the former world number one said, “Today I honestly didn’t enjoy it that much. I suffered quite a lot."

However, four-time Grand Slam winner Alcaraz has proven he can battle through tough periods and boasts an excellent record on clay this year, losing only once in the final at Barcelona while securing wins in Monte Carlo and Rome.

The architect of that sole defeat, Rune, will play his match against eighth seed Musetti in a night session. The Dane beat defending champion Alcaraz in straight sets in Catalonia. However, the 10th seed has shown inconsistent form at Roland Garros, losing the opening set in two of his three matches so far.

Musetti also had a setback in the last round, dropping his first set of the tournament against Argentinian Mariano Navone. “I think, again, as he (Musetti) said, he can’t afford to give me the first set, and the same for me, I can’t afford to give him the first set like this," said Rune. “(I’m) looking forward to that match; it’s going to be hopefully a great battle."

Two more Americans complete the day’s action on the men’s side of the draw, with 12th seed Tommy Paul playing Australian Alexei Popyrin and 16th-ranked Frances Tiafoe facing Germany’s Daniel Altmaier.

Three-time defending champion Swiatek will face 2022 Wimbledon winner Rybakina, after the Kazakh emerged victorious against Jelena Ostapenko, who holds a remarkable 6-0 win-loss record over the Pole.

“Both matches are going to be a challenge. But let’s see who wins," Swiatek said before discovering her last-16 opponent. When asked if she had a preference between Rybakina and Ostapenko, the 23-year-old joked, “No… Am I a good liar? Let’s say it doesn’t matter, really. Oh, my God. I couldn’t play poker."

Swiatek’s record against Rybakina is only marginally better, with the players tied at 4-4, though Rybakina has won both meetings between the two this season. Their last match on clay came in Stuttgart in 2024, with 12th seed Rybakina claiming victory in three sets.

World number one Sabalenka has dropped just 10 games in reaching the fourth round and will meet her first seeded player of the tournament against American Anisimova. Should the Belarusian advance to the quarter-final stage, where she surprisingly lost last year to Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva, she is likely to face Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen. The Chinese eighth seed will also take to the court on Sunday to battle with 18th-ranked Russian Liudmila Samsonova.

Last year’s runner-up and current Italian Open champion Paolini will kick off the day’s action on Court Philippe Chatrier against four-time quarter-finalist Svitolina.

(With inputs from AFP)

Ritayan Basu

Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes on cricket, having cov...Read More

Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes on cricket, having cov...

Read More

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News sports French Open: Alcaraz Tackles Shelton For Spot In Quarters; Swiatek Faces Old Foe