Key events
Here’s the story of the day, maybe the tournament, so far. Lois Boisson, ranked outside the world’s top 300, is into the quarter-finals of her home slam.
Norrie 2-5 Djokovic Norrie holds, but can’t make a dent in Djokovic’s serve, as the No 6 seed closes on the first set. He’s looked a little irritable though, and now we’re discovering a potential reason –he gets the physio out to treat blisters on his feet that have been bothering him in previous matches.
Next up on Lenglen, it’s the British No 1, Jack Draper, taking on the mercurial Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan. Bublik shocked Alex De Minaur in the second round, fighting back from two sets down to win. ““It was a bit early for me,” Bublik said afterwards. “11 am is not my preferable time [to play]. I was a bit sleepy in the first two sets. I’m not the guy who wakes up [early] always.” Fair enough.
Tuesday’s order of play is out, with four quarter-finals, all taking place on Chatrier. Play starts at 11am in Paris, 10am BST.
(1) Aryna Sabalenka v Qinwen Zheng (8)
(13) Elina Svitolina v Iga Swiatek (5)
(8) Lorenzo Musetti v Frances Tiafoe (15)
(12) Tommy Paul v Carlos Alcaraz (2) – night match
Norrie 1-4 Djokovic Norrie misjudges a drop shot – his 10th forced error, an occupational hazard when you’re playing Djokovic – and the Serb seals the game with an ace.
Madison Keys beats Hailey Baptiste 6-3, 7-5
A tough battle for the Aussie Open champ, but she gets the job done with a couple of clinical winners. Next up: Coco Gauff. This match lasted 1h 34min, the exact same length as Andreeva-Kasatkina, and with the same final score.
Norrie 1-3 Djokovic Norrie just missing the lines with a couple of ambitious shots, allowing Djokovic a couple of break points, and he restores his two-game lead with a drop shot that Norrie can’t retrieve.
Elsewhere, Madison Keys has broken Baptiste in the 11th game of the second set, and is serving for the match – but currently 15-30 down. The winner of that match will play Coco Gauff in the quarter-finals.
Norrie 1-2 Djokovic Norrie hits back, a booming cross-court backhand setting up a break point – which he converts as Djokovic nets! We’re back on serve.
Norrie 0-2 Djokovic A rough start for Norrie, slipping 30-0 down on serve after Djokovic holds in the opening game. He digs in, running down a loose drop shot to get back in the game, but Djokovic takes it to deuce and gets the early break as Norrie flays a forehand wide.
Norrie and Djokovic’s French Open records make for quite the comparison; the Briton has never reached the fourth round before and has a 7-7 career record. Djokovic has been to seven finals, won three of them and has 96 career victories on the clay.
A quick update from Court Suzanne-Lenglen, where Hailey Baptiste is battling hard against Madison Keys – it’s 4-4 in the second set, after Keys won the first 6-3.
Thanks Yara. Lois Boisson, eh? What a performance. Cam Norrie has to hope there’s some of that stardust still floating around on Chatrier. He’s out on court, as is the three-times Paris champion, Novak Djokovic.
Niall McVeigh is back to take you through what will hopefully be a blockbuster. Enjoy!
Here is Tumaini Carayol’s preview from Paris where he writes: “I’m going to have to suffer,” Norrie said. “I’m going to have to run four and a half hours to have a chance with him, and to push him where he’s uncomfortable as well. I’m going to have to play with quality, otherwise I have no chance.”
Up next is the big one: Norrie v Djokovic. The Briton has never beat Djokovic in five attempts. They have faced each other once in a grand slam – 2022 Wimbledon – where the Serb won 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. The two have also played against each other once this season – at the Geneva semi-final.
When two sports collide … Ousmane Dembélé, the footballer, is out on the Philippe-Chatrier with the shiny Champions League trophy right in the centre. I am sure several people in the crowd are PSG fans as well.
The player leads an “Ici c’est Paris!” chant before thanking the fans for their support while winning their first Champions League trophy and emphasising the team are hopeful to go on and win as many trophies as possible.
On Suzanne Lenglen the world No 7 Keys is up 6-3, 1-3 against Hailey Baptiste in an all-American affair.
Boisson is now the lowest ranked player to make the quarter-finals of a grand slam since Kaia Kanepi at the 2017 US Open and the first French wildcard to reach the Roland Garros quarter-final since Mary Pierce in 2002. Nerves of steel with six deuces in the penultimate game and four in the final one. Her next task will be the world No 7 Mirra Andreeva.
“Loïs! Loïs! Loïs! Loïs!” chant the crowd as the player steps up for her French on-court interview. She is reminded that this is her first top 10 win and her first match on this iconic court.
I am not quite sure what to say but thank you. Playing on this court with this atmosphere was amazing thank you.
I wasn’t expecting [this kind of performance]. Not really. I knew there was a chance, so I gave my all and I won.
I hope I am going to win it all!
The crowd roar for that last statement. She was not able to take a wildcard spot last year here due to a knee operation after tearing her ACL and now she is here! Surely the upset of the tournament so far.
World No 361 Loïs Boisson stuns world No 3 Jessica Pegula
Wow! The 22-year-old holds her nerve and does it! She wins 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 against a US Open finalist. She finishes it out in-style with a blistering forehand down the line.
Boisson goes up 30-0 but her first double fault on the match makes it 30-30. Pegula then bites first but the wildcard saves break point with a beautifully executed dropshot. She is sheepish with a half apology, not really meaning the shot but scrambling as she tried anything to get the ball over the net.
Another drop shot from the Frenchwoman, this one on purpose, sends us to a second deuce after Pegula loses advantage, and she gestures to the crowd to keep the cheers coming.
Pegula gains the advantage again after a short rally ends with Boisson going long … but back to deuce with a cracker of a winner from Boisson.
Boisson wins the game 5-4 and is about to serve for the match … Everyone on Philippe-Chatrier is on their feet and cheering for the final French singles player in the tournament. Throughout that game Boisson recognised that her opponent was uncomfortable and the depth of her returns and shot making, including a slice and a wicked forehand, were really poised in this game.
We are at deuce number six in this game and a fourth break point for Boisson … Every time either player is on the cusp, they just make a slight mistake with Pegula netting just now. The world No 361 (!) is going toe-to-toe with the world No 3.
Pegula’s forehand goes back to being shaky again. The American goes up 30-0 but then nets and her opponent holds with an ace and another amazing serve to hold. 4-4 in the third.
The French crowd is quite loud now, much to the annoyance of Pegula and the umpire.
In case you missed it Kasatkina earlier bowed out at with defeat to familiar foe Andreeva with the world No 6 easing to a 6-3, 7-5 win.
Hello all. This match looked to be Pegula’s especially with how she won the first set but the French crowd has gotten behind the crowd and urged her on. Right now though the American leads 6-3, 4-6, 4-3 Boisson. Pegula’s forehand shot and one-down the line gives her the slim lead in the third.
On Suzanne-Lenglen, Keys has opened with a service hold and leads Baptiste 1-0. Time to hand over to Yara El-Shaboury while I go and source a baguette.
Pegula is using every inch of the court to keep her opponent guessing; a long range, cross-court slice catches Boisson out and helps the American to break point. It’s rescued with some ferocious hitting, but Boisson then misses an attempted winner and we’re back to deuce. The wild card stays sharp, putting away a forehand to hold.
Keys and Baptiste are heading on court to begin their match. On Chatrier, Pegula has worked out that variety is key – a drop shot here, a spot of serve-and-volley there – and holds to edge 3-2 up in the decider.
Pegula stops the rot with a comfortable service hold, and wins a net battle to move 0-30 up on Boisson’s serve. Nerves creep in for the underdog – a double fault sealed with perhaps the widest serve attempt I’ve ever seen – and Pegula breaks back with a winner into the corner.
Errani and Paolini have won their doubles match on Simonne-Mathieu, beating Haddad Maia and Laura Siegemund 6-4, 6-3. The Italian duo are second seeds in the women’s doubles, and look like a formidable partnership.
Pegula mixes things up, a spinning drop shot helping her to 0-30 – but Boisson is unfazed, rattling off four straight points to hold. Four straight games won now by the wild card, and the upset is very much on.
Boisson is having a lot of joy targeting Pegula’s forehand – and it works again as she breaks to open the third set, the No 3 seed sending a down-the-line forehand long!
Boisson levels at 1-1 against Pegula! Any nerves from the world No 361? Not in the slightest – two fizzing winners set up three set points, and she takes it as Pegula sends a lob wide.
Keys v Baptiste won’t start for another 20 minutes – I think both players had only just arrived in the locker room when Zverev’s match ended early. So it’s all eyes on Lois Boisson as she looks to take it to a deciding set …
Back on Chatrier, Boisson holds serve and takes Pegula to deuce in the next game. The American has lost her rhythm somewhat, some loose shots handing Boisson a break point. And she takes it with an absolute ripper of a winner! The underdog will serve to level up this match …
Next on Suzanne-Lenglen, a little earlier than they expected, are Madison Keys and compatriot Hailey Baptiste. Keys is unbeaten in slams this year, having won the Australian Open title in January, and the 30-year-old is seeking a first quarter-final place at Roland-Garros since 2019.
Baptiste is into the second week of a slam for the first time, having upset Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia in the first round. She’s good friends with Frances Tiafoe and Coco Gauff – who awaits the winner in the quarter-finals – but has taken the long route to her current career-high world ranking of No 70, winning titles on the ITF Challenger circuit.
An epic game unfolding on Chatrier, with both players spurning game points at 3-3 on Pegula’s serve. Locked at deuce after eight minutes, Pegula digs out a drop shot and finds the baseline – and follows up with a cross-court winner. Boisson is making the No 3 seed raise her game, and so far she’s delivering, leading 6-3, 4-3.
There’s nobody ready to interview Zverev on court, so he heads back to the locker room. It’s a shame Griekspoor couldn’t continue after a competitive first set, but it means Zverev has spent under an hour on court and is into the quarter-finals, where he’ll face Novak Djokovic or Cam Norrie.
Alexander Zverev beats Tallon Griekspoor 6-4, 3-0 (ret)
Zverev breaks for a second time in the second set, and Griekspoor calls for the trainer. After a very quick discussion, the Dutchman opts to withdraw from the match. Zverev is through to the quarter-finals, but looks a bit nonplussed by it all.
Pegula has two break-back points, and while Boisson saves the first with a pinpoint lob, the American prevails in the next rally. We’re back on serve at 3-3.
After that early break for Griekspoor, Zverev has taken charge – breaking his opponent in the first game of the second, and backing up with a hold to lead 6-4, 2-0.
Boisson does earn a break point, and goes for it on second serve – only to send her return wide. She gets another chance as Pegula nets, and this time the shot down the line pays off! Boisson leads 3-2 in the second set and it’s game on.
Zverev takes the first set 6-4, racing through the required service holds with minimal fuss. Boisson holds for 2-2 in the second set, but may need to start causing Pegula some problems on serve to turn this game around.
Can Lois Boisson dig in at the start of this second set. A nervy double fault doesn’t help, but she follows it up with an ace and holds for 1-1 as Pegula nets a return. Meanwhile, Zverev has turned things around in the first set – Griekspoor misjudges a drop shot on break point, and the German leads 4-3 in the opening set.
Cam Norrie is up next on Chatrier after this match; the good news for the British No 3 is that he’s back in love with the game. The bad news is he has to play Novak Djokovic today, which may test that enthusiasm.
Fun fact: Korpanec Davies and Solar Donoso, both eliminated from the girls’ singles, are teaming up in the girls’ doubles later on. Also busy is Sara Errani – the Italian, a beaten finalist here in 2012, is playing women’s doubles with Jasmine Paolini, and then mixed doubles with Andrea Vavassori, against British duo Olivia Nicholls and Henry Patten.
Zverev gets the first set back on serve, breaking to trail Griekspoor 3-2. Pegula, meanwhile, wraps up an accomplished first set 6-3 – she’s playing the right kind of game against a punchy but inexperienced opponent.
Pegula gets another break on the board against Boisson, and this time she’s able to back it up with a hold. The American leads 5-3 in the first set; the winner of this one will face Mirra Andreeva next, which is no kind of reward.
The French men’s No 3, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, went out in the second round this year – but his sister, 16-year-old Daphnée, is in action in the girls’ singles later today.
Brit-watch: Out on court 11, 16-year-old Hannah Klugman has won her opening match in the girls’ singles, beating Spain’s Lorena Solar Donoso in three sets. On court four, Allegra Korpanec-Davies has lost 6-2, 7-5 to China’s Ruien Zhang.
Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles on Court Simonne-Mathieu, British duo Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski have beaten Nuno Borges and Arthur Rinderknech in the third round.
