Swiatek, Alcaraz cruise through while Rublev falls at French Open

Iga Swiatek kept her cool to advance to the fourth round of the French Open on another damp day at Roland Garros on Friday, but the red mist descended on Andrey Rublev, who raged and ranted before becoming the highest men's seed to fall.

Carlos Alcaraz returned to his best form after a recent arm injury, defeating American Sebastian Korda 6-4 7-6(5) 6-3, while fellow Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova defeated Chloe Paquet 6-1 6-3 following a scare in the previous round.

Swiatek, a three-time champion, could not have asked for a better venue to celebrate her 23rd birthday than Court Philippe Chatrier, and the top seed from Poland gave herself the perfect gift with a 6-4, 6-2 thrashing of Czech Marie Bouzkova.

"I was waiting until after the match to feel that I have a birthday, because I knew that I need to focus on my work because if I would lose, it would be a total disaster," said Swiatek, who beamed as the crowd sang to her.

"I'm happy that I won and I gave myself a present."

Jannik Sinner also received a lot of applause under the roof as the Australian Open champion defeated Russian Pavel Kotov 6-4 6-4 6-4, while third seed Coco Gauff and eighth seed Ons Jabeur also advanced into the next round.

As grey clouds gathered over Roland Garros for a sixth day, fans at Suzanne Lenglen sensed a big storm brewing inside Rublev's head, and the sixth seed allowed his emotions to take over in his 7-6(6) 6-2 6-4 defeat to Matteo Arnaldi.

As the match began to slip away, Rublev screamed at himself before throwing his racket on the ground, hitting his legs with it and kicking his courtside bench.

The scenes were reminiscent of when he bloodied his leg with his racket at the ATP Finals in 2023 and got defaulted two months ago in Dubai for yelling at a line judge.

It was a huge disappointment after the 26-year-old's talent shone through in his run to the Madrid title, raising hopes that he could win his first Grand Slam title after reaching the majors' final eight ten times.

"Completely disappointed with myself the way I behaved, the way I performed and I don't remember behaving worse in a Grand Slam ever," a remorseful Rublev said.

"I think it was first time I've behaved that bad."

Arnaldi's Italian compatriot Elisabetta Cocciaretto proved to be a thorn in her opponent's side, defeating 17th seed Liudmila Samsonova 7-6(4) 6-2 and stating that clay was the best surface for them to showcase their abilities.

"Italians, we were born on clay. It's different for the other players, from China and the United States, who were born on hardcourts," Cocciaretto said.

"For us, it's not a comfort zone but our surface."

Jabeur is another player who can work her magic on Parisian clay, and the Tunisian continued her quest to become the first Arab and African woman to win a Grand Slam by defeating Canadian Leylah Fernandez 6-4 7-6(5).

While third seed Gauff won 6-2 6-4 over Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska, her fellow American and former runner-up Sofia Kenin lost 6-2 7-5 to Dane Clara Tauson.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, who lost in the 2021 final, defeated China's Zhang Zhizhen 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 to advance to the fourth round for the sixth consecutive year.

"I'd assess today's performance as one of the best matches I have played so far in this tournament," Tsitsipas said.

"It's great to see myself in a position to get out there and play so effectively but also accurately at the same time."

SportsLigue