Boisson continues dream French Open run, Djokovic, Sinner eye semis
The 22-year-old, who was due to play at last year's French Open but suffered a knee injury the week before the tournament, is the lowest-ranked woman to reach a major semi-final in 40 years.
"It was incredible to play in front of this crowd and feel support like that," said Boisson, after hitting 24 winners past Russian sixth seed Andreeva to follow up her fourth-round win over world number three Jessica Pegula with an even more surprising victory.
A dramatic first set saw Andreeva miss a set point after leading 5-3, before Boisson fought back only to see three chances of her own come and go in a marathon 12th game.
But the wildcard fought off another set point in the tie-break, before taking her next opportunity, cupping her ear towards the adoring crowd in celebration.
Andreeva gathered herself and quickly built a 3-0 lead in the second set, only to be left jumping up and down in anger after a missed backhand gave Boisson a much-needed hold of serve.
The 18-year-old Andreeva started to crumble under the pressure, being given a warning for slamming a ball into the top tier of the stands as the atmosphere heated up under the Chatrier roof.
She was roundly booed when she then argued with the umpire over a line call, and was broken later that game after another double-fault to suddenly trail 4-3.
Boisson made it six consecutive games to secure a seismic victory as Andreeva, one of the pre-tournament favourites, completely unravelled.
Second seed Gauff battled back from a set down to defeat fellow American, and Australian Open champion, Madison Keys in an error-strewn opening match 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-1.
The former US Open champion upped her level enough after dropping the first set to get through a quarter-final littered with 14 double-faults and a whopping 101 unforced errors.
"It means a lot, especially getting through this tough match today, it wasn't an easy match and I'm very happy to get through it," she said.
Gauff, the 2022 losing finalist, will be hoping to go at least one better than when she lost to Iga Swiatek in last year's semi-final.
Swiatek continues her bid for a fourth consecutive Roland Garros title in a blockbuster clash with world number one Aryna Sabalenka in Thursday's other semi-final.
Zverev eyeing Djokovic scalp
Djokovic will compete in a record 19th French Open quarter-final against last year's runner-up Alexander Zverev in the night-session match.
The German third seed will be well rested after his last-16 opponent Tallon Griekspoor retired on Monday with an abdominal injury while trailing 6-4, 3-0.
Zverev, who lost to Carlos Alcaraz in last year's final, continues his latest bid for a maiden Grand Slam title after three runner-up finishes.
"For me, Carlos is the favourite. Then I would say the next three in line are Jannik, myself, and Novak, right? I still believe that," said Zverev, who could meet world number one Sinner in the semi-finals.
Zverev has made at least the last four at the past four French Opens and is into his seventh quarter-final.
The 28-year-old has won five of his 13 career matches with Djokovic, including in Melbourne in January when the Serb retired injured from their semi-final.
'Pretty dominant'
Djokovic, a three-time champion at Roland Garros, is just the second player to record 100 wins at the event after 14-time winner Rafael Nadal (112).
"It's a very pretty number, but 101 victories sounds better," said 38-year-old Djokovic who has reached the quarter-finals at the clay-court major for a 16th consecutive year.
World number six Djokovic is chasing a record 25th major title.
Italian Sinner takes on unseeded Kazakh Alexander Bublik, who hailed his emotional four-set win over fifth seed Jack Draper in the last 16 as the "best moment of his life".
Sinner leads 62nd-ranked Bublik 3-1 in previous meetings.
© 2025 AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
Australian Open champion Keys stunned at Wimbledon
Keys slumped to a 6-3, 6-3 loss against the German world number 104 in the third round on Court Two. The 30-year-old is the fifth player among the top six seeds in the women's draw to suffer a surprise exit from this year's tournament. Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Jasmine Paolini and Zheng Qinwen had already bowed out, though world number one Aryna Sabalenka is still alive. Keys, who beat Sabalenka to clinch her maiden Grand Slam crown in Melbourne in January, is yet to make it past the quarter-finals in 11 visits to the All England Club. She made 31 unforced errors in a lacklustre display against Siegemund. It was a miserable way to spend the fourth of July for Keys while her compatriots celebrated the Independence Day holiday back in the United States. Siegemund, who beat former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez in the second round, is through to the Wimbledon last 16 for the first time. At 37, she is the oldest player left in the women's tournament, with her best Grand Slam singles run coming when she made the French Open quarter-finals in 2020. "When you beat a great player like Madison you have to be really happy," said Siegemund. "I managed to keep my nerve in the end. If you don't have nerves in this moment you are probably dead. "It was a big opportunity. You just take a deep breath and remember your strategy. "All the girls on the tour are perfectionists. I'm the same but there was no pressure for me. I don't feel like I need to prove anything anymore."
France 24
5 hours ago
- France 24
Alcaraz back in action at Wimbledon as Raducanu eyes Sabalenka shock
In early third-round action at the All England Club, Japan's four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka lost in three sets to Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, ranked 50th in the world. Alcaraz was taken to five sets by Italy's Fabio Fognini in his opening match before dispatching Britain's Oliver Tarvet in straight sets. The Spaniard is on a fearsome 20-match winning streak that has brought him titles at the Rome Masters, the French Open and Queen's Club. He is seeking to match Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in winning three Wimbledon crowns in a row. Alcaraz's third-round opponent on Friday is Jan-Lennard Struff, ranked 125th in the world, who at 35 is 12 years older than the Spaniard. The world number two, who has three wins against his German opponent in four matches, is aware of the need to fine-tune his serve, which is a key weapon on grass. "I'm struggling a little bit with the serve," he said. "I'm feeling really different between Queen's and here with the balls, with the speed. "On grass the serve is probably the most important shot. At Queen's I started to serve unbelievable. But after the first round here, I left the court not happy at all with the serve." Raducanu confident Former US Open champion Raducanu believes she can oust women's world number one Sabalenka in a Centre Court blockbuster. The British star, who triumphed at Flushing Meadows in 2021, produced one of her best performances at the All England Club to defeat former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova in the second round. Belarusian Sabalenka is the last of the top-five seeds still standing in the women's draw after Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Jasmine Paolini and Zheng Qinwen were all eliminated. Three-time major winner Sabalenka, 27, is chasing a maiden Wimbledon title, having missed last year's Championships with of a shoulder injury. But Raducanu, 22, is in the mood to cause an upset. "I think having won against Marketa, she's also a really top opponent, so that gives me confidence. I feel amazing," she said. "Of course, Aryna is number one in the world, she's been so dominant in the women's game," she said. "I know it's going to be a massive challenge." Former world number one Osaka was aiming to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time, but Pavlyuchenkova ultimately had too much for her opponent, now a lowly 53rd in the world US men's 10th seed Ben Shelton returned to the court briefly on Friday to complete his second-round match, sealing a 6-2, 7-5, 6-4 win against Australia's Rinky Hijikata. Elsewhere in third-round, US fifth seed Taylor Fritz will hope to avoid another five-set marathon as he takes on Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Fritz last month won a fourth title on the grass at Eastbourne but has had two punishing outings at the All England Club this week.
France 24
5 hours ago
- France 24
Osaka blows chance to reach Wimbledon fourth round
Osaka was in a strong position after taking the first set on Court Two, but her bid to finally make the last 16 imploded as Pavlyuchenkova battled back to clinch a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory. The 27-year-old is a four-time Grand Slam champion, but she has not won a major since 2021. Osaka's four previous appearances at Wimbledon ended in two third-round defeats and losses in the first and second round. Once again she fell short at the grass-court Grand Slam. Since her triumph at the Australian Open four years ago, she is on a dismal run of 12 successive Grand Slam appearances without reaching the fourth round. Osaka, 27, gave birth to a daughter in July 2023, returning from a 15-month sabbatical for the start of the 2024 season. The former world number one, now down to 53rd in the WTA rankings, has always struggled on grass. Earlier this week, Osaka admitted she had feared playing on the surface for much of her career. "I don't know, with age fear kind of crept along and, I guess, paralysed me in a way," she said. "Now I'm kind of just getting over that and trying to spread my wings on grass." Osaka's wings were clipped by Pavlyuchenkova in a rollercoaster clash. The Japanese star quickly raced into a 4-1 lead and clinched the first set with an ace. Pavlyuchenkova levelled the match with a blistering forehand on set point in the second set. Osaka left the court to compose herself before the final set, but she was broken in the second game and fell 3-0 down. Faced with elimination, Osaka battled back, winning three consecutive games, only to crumble as Pavlyuchenkova pounced when the pressure mounted. "I felt like I was behind for the majority of the match, so I played point-by-point. I'm incredibly happy because I was mentally tough in the three matches that I have won," said the Russian. © 2025 AFP
