‘OK if she hates me’: Sabalenka faces no Ukraine handshake at French Open

‘OK if she hates me’: Sabalenka faces no Ukraine handshake at French Open
Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka play begins against Ukraine rival Marta Kostyuk at the French Open on May 28, 2023. (AP/File)
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Updated 26 May 2023

‘OK if she hates me’: Sabalenka faces no Ukraine handshake at French Open

‘OK if she hates me’: Sabalenka faces no Ukraine handshake at French Open
  • World number two Sabalenka knows that Kostyuk will refuse to shake hands after their first round match at Roland Garros
  • Kostyuk refused to shake hands with Belarus's two-time Grand Slam title winner and former world number one Victoria Azarenka at last year's US Open in New York

PARIS: Aryna Sabalenka said Friday that “it’s OK if she hates me” as the Belarusian star braced to face Ukraine rival Marta Kostyuk in a highly-charged French Open showdown.
World number two Sabalenka knows that Kostyuk, an outspoken critic of tennis authorities over their handling of players from Russia and their Belarusian allies in the aftermath of the invasion of Ukraine, will refuse to shake hands after their first round match at Roland Garros.
“If she hates me, OK. I can’t do anything about that,” said 25-year-old Sabalenka.
“There are going to be people who love me; there are going to be people who hate me. If she hates me, I don’t feel anything like that to her.”
Kostyuk refused to shake hands with Belarus’s two-time Grand Slam title winner and former world number one Victoria Azarenka at last year’s US Open in New York.
They agreed to touch racquets instead at the net at the end of the match.
“If I could I would stop the war,” said Australian Open champion Sabalenka.
“And about the no shaking, I can kind of understand them. Like I imagine if they’re going to shake hands with Russians and Belarusians, then they’re gonna get so many messages from their home countries.
“So I kind of understand why they are not doing it. At the same time, I feel like sports shouldn’t be in politics. Like we’re just athletes. If they feel good with no shaking hands, I’m happy with that.”
Sabalenka defeated Kostyuk in Dubai in February 2022, just one week before Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine.
Last week in Rome, Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina refused to shake hands with Veronika Kudermetova after beating the Russian in the semifinal.


Daniel Altmaier wins French Open epic as Andreeva strikes blow for teens

Daniel Altmaier wins French Open epic as Andreeva strikes blow for teens
Updated 02 June 2023

Daniel Altmaier wins French Open epic as Andreeva strikes blow for teens

Daniel Altmaier wins French Open epic as Andreeva strikes blow for teens
  • The longest ever match at Roland Garros remains the six hours and 33 minutes it took Fabrice Santoro to beat fellow Frenchman Arnaud Clement in 2004
  • Andreeva became just the seventh player under the age of 17 to make the third round in Paris in 30 years

PARIS: Germany’s Daniel Altmaier won the fifth longest ever French Open match on Thursday as 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva made the last 32, providing a tantalizing glimpse into the sport’s future.

Altmaier saved two match points and then held his nerve on a fifth match point of his own to knock out Italian eighth seed Jannik Sinner 6-7 (0/7), 7-6 (9/7), 1-6, 7-6 (7/4), 7-5 after five hours and 26 minutes of breathless action on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

“I just love the game of tennis,” said Altmaier, ranked 79 in the world and who broke down in tears at the end of the marathon.

“I don’t know if you can call it a historical match, but it was one to remember. Playing every point you can with the best effort, that’s what keeps you in reality.”

The longest ever match at Roland Garros remains the six hours and 33 minutes it took Fabrice Santoro to beat fellow Frenchman Arnaud Clement in 2004.

The 24-year-old Altmaier, who made the last 16 in 2020, twice faced defeat when Sinner was serving for victory in the fourth set.

He battled back to level the tie and broke in game seven of the decider but then failed to serve it out.

He immediately gave himself another chance, though, and this time crept over the line as he secured a surprise win on his fifth match point after a thrilling final game in which he also saved three break points.

Next up is a clash with Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov for a place in the last 16.

“That’s sport,” said Sinner. “I’ll come back but it’s tough to swallow.”

Andreeva became just the seventh player under the age of 17 to make the third round in Paris in 30 years — joining the likes of Serena Williams and Martina Hingis — with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Diane Parry of France.

Andreeva, ranked at 143 and making her Grand Slam debut after coming through the qualifiers, will face Coco Gauff in the next round.

The 19-year-old Gauff, the runner-up to Iga Swiatek last year, defeated Julia Grabher of Austria 6-2, 6-3.

“She’s an experienced player. I am sure it will be a great match. She will do her best, I will do mine. We’ll have to see who does it better,” added Andreeva, the youngest player in the third round since a 15-year-old Sesil Karatantcheva made the quarter-finals in 2005.

Swiatek maintained her bid to become the first woman to successfully defend the French Open title in 16 years by cruising into the third round with a 6-4, 6-0 win over American Claire Liu.

World No. 1 Swiatek, who turned 22 on Wednesday, will face China’s Wang Xinyu on Saturday for a place in the second week.

The Polish star could lose her world number one ranking for the first time in over a year next week if she fails to lift a fourth Grand Slam singles title.

Justine Henin was the last woman to win back-to-back Roland Garros titles when she lifted her third in a row and fourth in total in 2007.

One year after suffering a season-ending ankle ligament injury in the semifinal against Rafael Nadal, Germany’s Alexander Zverev made a winning return to Court Philippe Chatrier.

Zverev, who was taken off court in a wheelchair in that 2022 tie, buried the misery with a confident 6-4, 6-2, 6-1 win over Alex Molcan.

World No.4 and Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina racked up her 30th win of the year by defeating Czech teenager Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-3.

Kazakh fourth seed Rybakina converted three of the 10 break points she carved out and fired 30 winners past 18-year-old Noskova.

Last year’s men’s runner-up Casper Ruud booked his place in the third round with a four-set win over battling Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri.

The Norwegian fourth seed was pushed hard by his 129th-ranked opponent but clinched a 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 success.

Ruud will next face Zhang Zhizhen who became the first Chinese man to make the last 32 since 1937 with a 7-6 (7/3), 6-3, 6-4 win over Argentine qualifier Thiago Agustin Tirante.

The bottom half of the men’s draw had already opened up after world No. 2 Daniil Medvedev was knocked out in the first round by Brazil’s Thiago Seyboth Wild.

World No.172 Seyboth Wild backed up that win by seeing off Guido Pella of Argentina 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.


Rybakina beats Czech teen to reach 3rd round at French Open, Keys loses

Rybakina beats Czech teen to reach 3rd round at French Open, Keys loses
Updated 01 June 2023

Rybakina beats Czech teen to reach 3rd round at French Open, Keys loses

Rybakina beats Czech teen to reach 3rd round at French Open, Keys loses
  • The Wimbledon champion, the No. 4 seed at Roland Garros, beat 18-year-old Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-3 on Court Suzanne Lenglen
  • “I cannot say that here it’s easy for me. It’s still every match getting better and better,” Rybakina said on court

PARIS: Elena Rybakina’s comfort on clay improved as she eased into the third round at the French Open by beating another Czech teenager on Thursday.
The Wimbledon champion, the No. 4 seed at Roland Garros, beat 18-year-old Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-3 on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
“I cannot say that here it’s easy for me. It’s still every match getting better and better,” Rybakina said on court. “It was a bit slippery for me today, I don’t know why.”
She ought to be feeling cosy on dirt after winning the Italian Open, but the 6-foot (1.8-meter) Kazakh is banking most of her confidence on her height advantage.
“This is my good weapon,” she said, “but, at the same time, to move on clay it’s not easy. It’s always I need more to prepare and, of course, be more patient during the rallies.”
The Australian Open runner-up hit 30 winners to Noskova’s 16, though both players had 26 unforced errors.
“I was struggling a lot on her serves,” the Moscow-born Rybakina said.
Rybakina, who beat Brenda Fruhvirtova in the first round, will next face Sara Sorribes Tormo of Spain.
No. 20 Madison Keys committed a whopping 74 unforced errors in her 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 loss to fellow American player Kayla Day on Court Simonne Mathieu.
The 23-year-old Day, who won the girls’ title at the 2016 US Open, is ranked 138th and came through qualifying to make her Roland Garros main-draw debut. She beat French wild card Kristina Mladenovic in the first round.
Later, defending champion and No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek faces Claire Liu of the United States. Coco Gauff — last year’s runner-up — takes on Julia Grabher of Austria.
Top men in action include two-time major finalist Casper Ruud, No. 8 Jannik Sinner and No. 12 Frances Tiafoe.
No. 18 Alex de Minaur of Australia lost to Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina 6-3, 7-6 (2), 6-3.


Djokovic back in action at French Open after Kosovo controversy

Djokovic back in action at French Open after Kosovo controversy
Updated 31 May 2023

Djokovic back in action at French Open after Kosovo controversy

Djokovic back in action at French Open after Kosovo controversy
  • Djokovic scrawled the message "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence" on a camera following his first-round match
  • "It was a message that is very activist, that is very political," Amelie Oudea-Castera told broadcaster France 2

PARIS: Novak Djokovic will take to Court Philippe Chatrier in Wednesday’s French Open night session under fire for his recent comments about clashes in Kosovo, after world number one Carlos Alcaraz also plays in the second round.
Djokovic, who is chasing a men’s record 23rd Grand Slam singles title at Roland Garros, scrawled the message “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence” on a camera following his first-round match.
The 36-year-old faces Hungarian Marton Fucsovics for a place in the last 32 but the focus has been on his political views, with the French sports minister on Wednesday condemning the two-time Roland Garros champion.
“It was a message that is very activist, that is very political,” Amelie Oudea-Castera told broadcaster France 2.
“You shouldn’t get involved, especially in the current circumstances, and it shouldn’t happen again.”
She added that tournament director Amelie Mauresmo had spoken to Djokovic and his entourage.
Thirty peacekeepers from a NATO-led force in Kosovo were injured in clashes with ethnic Serb demonstrators on Monday during protests about the installation of ethnic Albanian mayors in northern Kosovo.
“Kosovo is our cradle, our stronghold, center of the most important things for our country... There are many reasons why I wrote that on the camera,” Djokovic told Serb media after writing his message.
Djokovic will be hoping for less drama on the court against an opponent he has beaten four times in as many meetings.
He has not failed to reach the third round of a Grand Slam tournament since the 2017 Australian Open.
In Wednesday’s early action, Stefanos Tsitsipas cruised into the third round with a straight-sets win over Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena.
The Greek fifth seed, the runner-up to Djokovic in 2021, claimed a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 win on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Tsitsipas will next face either Argentinian Diego Schwartzman or Portugal’s Nuno Borges for a place in the second week.
Elina Svitolina battled back from a break and a set down to beat Storm Hunter, just 12 hours after her husband Gael Monfils’ late-night escape act.
Ukrainian Svitolina, playing at a Grand Slam event for the first time since the 2022 Australian Open, downed qualifier Hunter 2-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Home favorite Monfils claimed his first win in nine months in a five-set first-round thriller against Sebastian Baez which finished after midnight in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
“Yes, I watched him, but not live. I was screaming in my room so if someone heard me, it was me cheering for Gael,” said Svitolina, who was being supported on Court Simonne Mathieu by Monfils.
American third seed Jessica Pegula booked her spot in the last 32 when opponent Camila Giorgi retired injured after losing the first set 6-2.
Former champion Jelena Ostapenko crashed out, though, losing 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 to the United States’ Peyton Stearns.
Later, Alcaraz continues his bid for a second major title against Japan’s Taro Daniel, while world number two Aryna Sabalenka plays Iryna Shymanovich in an all-Belarusian women’s tie.


French Open’s No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev loses to 172nd-ranked qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild

French Open’s No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev loses to 172nd-ranked qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild
Updated 31 May 2023

French Open’s No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev loses to 172nd-ranked qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild

French Open’s No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev loses to 172nd-ranked qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild
  • Seybolt Wild needed to win three matches in qualifying rounds last week just to make it into the men’s bracket
  • It’s the first time the second-seeded man lost in the first round of the French Open since 2000

PARIS: If anyone thought a couple of recent runs to Week 2 at the French Open and a clay-court title a little more than a week ago made Daniil Medvedev a little fonder of the red stuff, forget it.

A first-round loss as the No. 2 seed at Roland Garros — against Thiago Seybolt Wild, a qualifier ranked 172nd who never had won a Grand Slam match anywhere until Tuesday — sure reminded Medvedev of his distaste for the slow surface used in Paris.

“I had a mouthful of clay since probably the third game of the match, and I don’t like it. I don’t know if people like to eat clay, to have clay in their bags, in their shoes, the socks — white socks, you can throw them (into the) garbage after clay season,” said Medvedev, who won the 2021 US Open and reached three other major finals on hard courts. “Maybe some people like it. I don’t.”

Seybolt Wild needed to win three matches in qualifying rounds last week just to make it into the men’s bracket — something he’d failed to do on eight previous attempts at Slams — but looked very much like he belonged on Court Philippe Chatrier. He hit big forehands and kept his nerve down the stretch to oust Medvedev 7-6 (5), 6-7 (8), 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

It’s the first time the second-seeded man lost in the first round of the French Open since 2000, when Pete Sampras — no fan of clay himself — was eliminated by Mark Philippoussis.

“It definitely was the happiest day of my life,” said Seybolt Wild, a 23-year-old from Brazil. “I knew it was going to be a tough match, but I knew how to play. I have watched him play 1,000 times already. I just had to believe in myself.”

So what was his game plan going in?

“Walking on the court, I really just wanted to get the angles, try to get to the net as much as possible, try to use my forehand against his,” Seybolt Wild explained. “It worked pretty well.”

Did it ever.

Employing a high-risk, high-reward style, Seybolt Wild compiled a 69-45 edge in total winners, including 47-15 on the forehand side.

He hadn’t even played a tour-level main-draw match at all in 2023, instead competing on the lower-level ATP Challenger Tour. At his most recent event, in Turin, Italy, Seybolt Wild made it to the quarterfinals and left with a paycheck for $5,950.

“His life is going to be better if he plays like this every match,” Medvedev said. “He’s going to get more money, more sponsors, win big titles. But he has to play like this. Not once on the Philippe Chatrier, but a lot of times in different tournaments all over the world throughout the year.”

At his news conference, Seyboth Wild drew the sort of attention and questions that arrive when a relatively unknown player pulls off a stunning win.

One reporter pulled out some puns related to Seyboth Wild’s last name, including references to whether this was his “wildest victory” and exceeded his “wildest dreams” — to which the response was: “I honestly don’t know how many times I have heard that joke, but it never gets old.”

Later, a query arrived about a far more serious matter: The Rio de Janeiro state prosecutors’ office charged Seyboth Wild in June 2022 with domestic violence against his ex-partner. He has denied any wrongdoing; a ruling is expected sometime this year.

“I don’t think it’s a subject we should talk about ... right here,” Seyboth Wild said. “I don’t think it’s a question you should be (asking).”

Medvedev’s exit was the most significant result as the first round closed. The top women’s seeds in action all advanced, including defending champion Iga Swiatek, 2022 runner-up Coco Gauff, reigning Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina and two-time major finalist Ons Jabeur. So did No. 4 Casper Ruud (the runner-up to Rafael Nadal a year ago), No. 6 Holger Rune, No. 9 Taylor Fritz and No. 16 Tommy Paul among the men.

Good as he’s always been on hard courts, Medvedev never was known for his prowess on clay: He began his French Open career with a 0-4 record. But he’s been showing signs of improvement, reaching the quarterfinals in Paris in 2021 and the fourth round last year, and claiming the trophy on the surface in Rome this month.

He just could never quite get the upper hand during a 4-hour, 15-minute contest.

Medvedev, who was treated by a trainer for a nosebleed in the third set, didn’t help himself by double-faulting a career-high 15 times, something he blamed in part on the wind that topped 15 mph.

By turns, Medvedev credited Seybolt Wild for playing well, saying the guy could end up ranked in the top 30 by year’s end, but also seemed a bit miffed.

“I honestly hope he’s going to play like this later on,” Medvedev said, “because if not, I’m going to be disappointed. I’m going to be like, ‘Why today? Why not in two days?’”

He was asked how he would characterize his relationship with clay, now that this portion of the tour calendar is done.

“Every time it finishes, I’m happy,” Medvedev replied. “So I’m happy. I’m happy again.”


Jabeur bounces back at French Open, Ruud and Russian teenager advance

Jabeur bounces back at French Open, Ruud and Russian teenager advance
Updated 30 May 2023

Jabeur bounces back at French Open, Ruud and Russian teenager advance

Jabeur bounces back at French Open, Ruud and Russian teenager advance
  • A year after her first-round exit, the No. 7 seed Jabeur beat Lucia Bronzetti 6-4, 6-1 to help erase some bad memories
  • "I’m very happy to win my first match on Philippe Chatrier — because I’ve never won here,” Jabeur said on court about the clay-court tournament's main stadium

PARIS: Ons Jabeur got a do-over on Court Philippe Chatrier at the French Open and won this time.
A year after her first-round exit, the No. 7 seed Jabeur beat Lucia Bronzetti 6-4, 6-1 to help erase some bad memories and answer questions about a recent calf injury.
The Tunisian, a crowd favorite in Paris, smiled and expressed relief in not repeating last year’s mistake, when she lost to Magda Linette of Poland.
“I’m very happy to win my first match on Philippe Chatrier — because I’ve never won here,” Jabeur said on court about the clay-court tournament’s main stadium.
Now she can focus on trying to win her first major. She was runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open last year.
The 28-year-old Jabeur has also battled injuries this season. She had knee surgery after the Australian Open, and was then sidelined with a calf injury. She had stopped playing against top-ranked Iga Swiatek at the clay-court tournament in Stuttgart, Germany, in late April and then pulled out of the Madrid Open.
“It was a very difficult period for me after Stuttgart,” said Jabeur, adding that she’s beginning to find her rhythm.
Jabeur struck 27 winner’s to Bronzetti’s seven, though with 24 unforced errors she’ll have room to improve.
Also Tuesday, 16-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva had a memorable Grand Slam debut by dominating Alison Riske-Amritraj 6-2, 6-1. Andreeva’s older sister — 18-year-old Erika — was facing Emma Navarro later in the day.
Later, Swiatek gets her French Open title defense started against Cristina Bucsa, who is ranked 70th.
On the men’s side, No. 4 seed Casper Ruud beat qualifier Elias Ymer 6-4, 6-3, 6-2, to remind the higher-profile tournament favorites that he was runner-up to Rafael Nadal last year at Roland Garros.