Alcaraz wobbles but reaches French Open last 16

Reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz stumbled his way into the last 16 of the French Open on Friday with a 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over Bosnian world number 69 Damir Dzumhur.

Second seed Alcaraz broke twice in each of the first two sets and seemed to be cruising but a dogged Dzumhur refused to roll over and pinched the third set.

The 33-year-old Dzumhur had failed to get past the first round of qualifying at Roland Garros in his last four attempts, but he broke to open the fourth set and give Alcaraz greater cause for concern.

Alcaraz’s frustration grew when three break points slipped beyond his grasp the very next game. He eventually got back on serve at 3-3 though before another break put him within sight of victory.

The Spaniard couldn’t close it out initially but then earned a pair of match points on Dzumhur’s serve, finally getting across the line at the second attempt to end his rival’s spirited effort.

“Today I honestly didn’t enjoy it that much. I suffered quite a lot,” said a relieved Alcaraz.

“That’s why doing a really good result in a Grand Slam is really difficult because you have to maintain a really high level for three to four hours.”

Alcaraz said he had to dig deep after admitting his energy levels dropped after a dominant first two sets.

“It was really difficult for me to boost myself. I had to give everything I had inside me. In the end I’m just proud about getting the win.”

Four-time Grand Slam winner Alcaraz advances to face US 13th seed Ben Shelton for a place in the quarter-finals after picking up his 18th win in 19 matches on clay this season.

Australian Open semi-finalist Shelton is one of four Americans still in the men’s draw. He knocked out Italian qualifier Matteo Gigante in straight sets after receiving a walkover in the second round.

Swiatek and Sabalenka into last 16

Iga Swiatek kept her bid for a fourth consecutive French Open title on track Friday, advancing to the last 16 at Roland Garros along with top seed Aryna Sabalenka, Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen and Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.

Reigning men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz will look to book his place in the last 16 later on Friday to join Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti, Dane Holger Rune and American Ben Shelton, who all reached the fourth round.

Swiatek came through despite a very close second set against Romania’s world number 60 Jaqueline Cristian, winning 6-2, 7-5 in nearly two hours in sweltering conditions on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

“She went for it every time I gave her a chance,” said Swiatek, hoping to become the first woman to win four successive Roland Garros titles since Suzanne Lenglen 102 years ago.

Swiatek broke the 60th-ranked Cristian twice in a comfortable first set, but she was pushed a lot harder by her rival in the second and had to save six break points.

“I’m just happy that I was super solid and didn’t give any free points but she used her chances.”

The 23-year-old Pole will next play 12th seed Elena Rybakina after the Kazakh dispatched 2017 champion Jelena Ostapenko 6-2, 6-2 in a clash of big hitters.

Swiatek has a 4-4 record against Rybakina but has lost both previous meetings on clay. However she was relieved at avoiding Ostapenko, who is 6-0 against her.

A grinning Swiatek suggested earlier she had no preference as to her last-16 opponent before asking: “Am I a good liar?”

“Let’s say it doesn’t matter, really. Oh, my God. I couldn’t play poker,” joked the world number five who has not won a title since last year’s French Open.

Earlier Sabalenka produced a dominant display in a 6-2, 6-3 win over 34th-ranked Serbian left-hander Olga Danilovic.

But the Madrid Open winner, whose best result at Roland Garros was a semi-final in Paris two years ago, insisted the pressure was on Swiatek.

“Let’s just leave it (the pressure) on Iga (Swiatek) since she won it, what, three times in a row,” said Sabalenka.

The 27-year-old Belarusian next plays 16th-seeded American Amanda Anisimova who ousted Danish 22nd seed Clara Tauson 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 in their third-round tie.

Zheng ended the run of Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko 6-3, 6-4.

The Chinese eighth seed has now won nine successive matches at Roland Garros following her run to Olympic gold last year.

Zheng is through to the fourth round in Paris for the second time and will next play Russian 19th seed Liudmila Samsonova who brushed aside Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska 6-2, 6-3.

Italian fourth seed Paolini swept past Ukrainian lucky loser Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-4, 6-1.

Paolini, the runner-up last year at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, advances to a meeting with Ukrainian 13th seed Elina Svitolina or American Bernarda Pera.

Eighth seed Musetti won 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 against Argentine Mariano Navone as he follows on from his runner-up finish in Monte Carlo and semi-final runs in Madrid and Rome.

But the Italian dropped his first set in Paris against world number 97 Navone.

“I’ve grown up a lot. A match like this I don’t know if I would (have) come back a few years ago,” said Musetti.

“The heat was pretty tough to manage. But happy to find a way to turn around the match.”

Musetti, who reached the fourth round in Paris for the third time, next plays Rune who was two points from defeat in the fourth set before rallying past France’s Quentin Halys 4-6, 6-2, 5-7, 7-5, 6-2.

US 13th seed Ben Shelton eased past Italian qualifier Matteo Gigante 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 to set up a clash with either Alcaraz or 69th-ranked Dzumhur, who play in the night session.

American Tommy Paul, the 12th seed, got past Russian Karen Khachanov 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (9/7), 3-6, 6-3 and meets Australian Alexei Popyrin, the 25th seed, who beat Portugal’s Nuno Borges 6-4, 7-6 (13/11), 7-6 (7/5).

Arthur Fils, the French number one, withdrew ahead of his third-round match. The 14th seed was set to play Russia’s Andrey Rublev on Saturday for a place in the last 16.

Fils’ withdrawal extends the host nation’s wait for a first men’s champion at Roland Garros since Yannick Noah in 1983.

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