ATP
Not all right on the night
THE scheduling for the French Open night games is once again under the spotlight – for the lack of a women’s match in the peak viewing slot.
There have been women’s matches, but not top of the bill. Why?
Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo explained that this time slot was reserved for the best match of the day – and the match that gets the bigger audience at Roland Garros is a men’s match.
Take a glance around the stands during the matches – the proof is there.
Some may argue, and rightly so, that there is a need to promote women’s matches.
And one journalist has called it out on social media.
“This year so far, none of the six nights will have had women’s matches scheduled. Tomorrow night [June 3], Zverev vs. Tiafoe. No Swiatek, Jabeur or Gauff vs. Andreeva.”
But let’s look deeper – as this is not a sexist issue.
Swiatek has made it clear that she doesn’t want to play night matches.
Last year Mauresmo apologised for saying women’s tennis did not have the same ‘appeal’.
But she is right – commercial reasons prove that – bums on seats in the arena and lower TV ratings.
And while we are in Paris, what is it with all this booing?
TUNISIAN Ons Jabeur was booed after she beat home star Oceane Dodin in round two at Roland Garros.
She admitted afterwards that the fans at Roland-Garros are “difficult” and didn’t enjoy being booed during the match.
“The French crowd is a bit difficult, I would say,” she said after the match. “I don’t like it when they boo, but that’s part of the game.
“They want French players to win. In the other countries, although I hit a good shot, they appreciate not necessarily here. They prefer me to miss, but it’s part of the game.”
Booing at a Grand Slam? To borrow from another sport … it’s just not tennis.
ANOTHER to be booed was American Taylor Fritz, jeered by fans after he beat Arthur Rinderknech 2-6 6-4 6-3 6-4.
Fritz celebrated his win by placing his finger to his lips as fans booed him.
“The crowd was just so great that I had to let it fire me up. They cheered so well for me, I wanted to make sure I won. Thanks guys,” the American said sarcastically in his on-court interview.
AND…. What was this all about…?
Video footage has emerged of a photographer being dragged out of the arena during Carlos Alcaraz’s match with Denis Shapovalov.
A clip by Eurosport Polska shows the four members of security dragging the journalist out of the arena. The reasons for his rejection are as of now uncertain.
BELARUSIAN World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka opted to skip a press conference after her win over Kamilla Rakhimova during the week, citing safety reasons.
Some have likened the boycott to that of former former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka, who had a history of skipping press conferences, claiming a variety of reasons, including mental health, while simultaneously posting on her social media channels promoting sponsors.
But Sabalenka’s is more likely because of the ongoing issues between her and Ukrainian players.
“For my own mental health and well-being, I decided to take myself out of this situation today, and the tournament has supported me in this. On Wednesday I didn’t feel safe in press conference,“ she said.
Didn’t feel safe from what?
Journalists doing their job and asking her about her homeland’s support of Russia in its invasion of another sovereign country.
WITH Tennis participation in the US apparently surging, the USTA announced last week its marketing campaign for the 2023 US Open will be led by someone called ‘Cookie’.
Who? You may well ask. And GST asked a couple of savvy younger generation – answer: who?
The USTA’s creative agency, Dentsu Creative, wants to connect with younger potential fans.
New Jersey-native Cookie Kawaii (real name Vanice Palmer) has had a couple of Twitter hits with ‘Vibe’ and ‘Violin’ and according to USTA’s marketing guru, Nicole Kankam, “is a unique talent with a distinctive voice that we think can further connect with new fans as the future of tennis shines bright under the spotlight of the US Open.”
‘Violin’ a rap song, has apparently been streamed 40 million times.
The US Open will begin Monday, August 28 and end on Sunday, September 10.
NO great shock that Daniil Medvedev was dumped out of the French Open last week in the first round – although by a rank outsider might have been more of an eye-opener.
No. 172-ranked Thiago Seyboth Wild, a 23-year-old Brazilian virtual unknown, overcame cramps before dominating the back end of the match.
“It definitely was the happiest day of my life,” Seyboth Wild said after the match.
“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.”
BUT did you know that in 2021, Seyboth Wild faced a lawsuit filed by his ex-girlfriend Thayane Lima and was investigated by police in Rio de Janeiro over allegations of mental and physical abuse.
He denied the allegations, describing them as “fabricated and vengeful claims”.
And Medvedev? He has always struggled on clay and has shown distaste for the surface over a number of years.
BIANCA Andreescu has tapped into a new source to get her back to winning ways on court: her Romanian grandmother.
“I started thinking about my grandmother because she’s getting old, and I’m very close to her. She said – in Romanian, she doesn’t speak English – ‘Bianca, I really want to watch you win another major’,” Andreescu said in Paris on Tuesday, after beating Victoria Azarenka.
And having her grandmother close helps Andreescu realise that success on the tennis court is worth fighting for.
“The last few weeks haven’t been easy for me, just like recovering from my injury and all that stuff,” she said.
“I’m still not 100 per cent. I still get pain here and there. I just have to push through it and not think that it’s bad pain.
“My fighting spirit is back, so that feels nice.”
Photo: Roger Parker International Sports Fotos Ltd
AMERICAN Jessica Pegula has revealed she got food poisoning shortly after arriving in Paris and said she was “a zombie for two days.”
Pegula arrived in the French capital on Tuesday went to a restaurant for a meal.
“I don’t know exactly what did the damage,” she told the BBC.
“I had escargots (snails) – I love escargots – but everyone else in my group had them. I also had salmon so maybe it was a bad piece of fish.
“I was throwing up for the whole night and I couldn’t sleep much. I didn’t practise on Wednesday, I practised on Thursday – but it was not pretty.
“I could barely do anything. I was getting a lot of nausea and acid reflux, I wasn’t eating.
“I was afraid to eat anything. I didn’t have an appetite. It lingered for four or five days but I wasn’t able to just sit in bed, I had a bunch of stuff to do.”
CAM Norrie should think himself lucky there are no video replays in tennis – or he would be playing well into the early hours, if the delays annoying soccer fans are any indication.
Norrie called for replays to be used in tennis after a umpiring controversy in his second-round victory over Lucas Pouille at the French Open.
Umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore failed to spot a double bounce at a key moment in the third set of Norrie’s 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 win.
Both men said afterwards a video replay might have resolved the issue – albeit that soccer overtime now often extends games for lengthy periods while referees still debate a ruling with their VAR system that also still got it wrong.
AND finally … Rafa Nadal pumps his fist after undergoing minor surgery for a psoas muscle injury in a Barcelona hospital.
The what muscle?
The psoas muscle is one of a number of muscles that overlie the vertebral column in your back.
Alexander Zverev cooled the jets of a teenaged tearaway on Tuesday, schooling Spaniard Rafael Jodar 7-6 (3), 6-1, 6-3 to power to his fifth career semi-final at the French Open.
The world No. 3 German finished runner-up in Paris two years ago and is still seeking his first trophy at one of the majors.
Zverev has been a consistent presence at the business end of the event here, figuring iin five of the past six semis.
But the achievement doesn’t amount to much for the seed, who has his eye on the big prize.
“I want to keep going. I don’t really care so much about a semi-final,” he said. “I want to win all the matches in front of me.
“Today was a tough test against a good player – that’s it for now.”
The 29-year-old who becomes the ninth man to play five Paris semi-finals, got away slowly as the 19-year-old Jodar showed his intentions with an early break..
But the seed began turning the tables on his young opponent while trailing 5-2 in the opening set after dropping serve in the eight-minute opening game.
Jodar’s unravelling began as he served for the first set leading 5-4 but was unable to close it out.
From then on, Zverev was in control.
The German won the opener in a tiebreaker and dominated the second to claim that chapter also.
In the third, he broke the fading youngster in the first and last games of the set
before closing out the win with a running forehand down the line on match point.
“He had perfect rhythm in the first set and I didn’t,” the winner said. “I was playing too short and too defensive.
“The ball was also not bouncing as high as it did in (last week’s) heat, I had to flatten out my shots.
“He outplayed me at the beginning of the first, but I managed to come back.
he seemed a bit nervous when he served for (the set).
“I took my chances, it was a good match for me.”
Main photo:- Alexander Zverev in control at Roland Garros – by ATPTour.com
Matteo Berrettini took Italian revenge on Monday against the Argentine who knocked out Jannik Sinner with a 6-3, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (6) fourth-round demolition of Juan Manuel Cerundolo at the French Open.
Former top 10 player Berrettini, now mended after several seasons of intermittent injury absences sent the South American packing in a solid clay display.
The Italian saved three Cerundolo set points in the third-set tiebreaker, with Berrettini claiming a match point on an inside-out forehand, and following up with a serve winner..
“I feel great,” Berrettini said. “I’m happy with the support in a full stadium.
“This is why we train and fight, I’m enjoying the atmosphere with my team and family.”
Fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime booked the last eight as he put out another South American in Canadian-born Chilean AlejandroTabilo 6-3, 7-5, 6-1.
FAA becomes the first Canadian man to complete the set of quarter-finals at all four Grand Slam tournaments.
The 30-year-old Berretini from Rome is competing at Roland Garros for the first time since 2021 when he also reached the last eight here.
The current No. 105 is the lowest-ranked men’s quarter-finalist in Paris since in 2007.
Cobolli lost his first set of the tournament as he ran up against an American with negligible experience on clay, defeating Zach Svajda 6-2, 6-3, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5).
The 10th-seeded Italian’s victory put him into his second Grand Slam and his first in Paris.
“I was a little bit nervous to close the match today,” the winner said. “It means a lot, this tournament, for me.
“Sometimes it’s not easy when you have to close, especially when you are up in the score like I was today.
“But also Zachary played a really good match today after the second set… tennis is like this. At the end, I was happy, and that’s the important thing.”
Svajda came to the major with only one career match win on clay. He began correcting that in the third round by beating Francisco.Cerundolo.
Cobolli cruised through the first two sets but his perfect set record took a dent in the third as Svajda forced a tiebreaker and saved a match point after closing the Italian’s 5-1 lead and forcing a tiebreaker.
It took a tiebreak fourth set to settle the outcome after more than three and a quarter hours.
Alexander Zverev stayed on track for a possible fourth Grand Slam final as the highest seed remaining in the men’s draw at the French Open moved efficiently into the quarter-finals on Sunday.
The German who has finished runner-up at the Australian and US Open plus Roland Garros, defeated qualifying lucky loser Jesper de Jong 7-6 (3), 6-4, 6-1.
With this week’s second-round losses by world No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner and 24-time Grand Slam singles champion Novak Djokovic, Zverev could have one of his best chances at lifting a major trophy.
The 29-year-old reached his eighth Roland Garros quarter-final as he beat his Dutch opponent on de Jong’s 26th birthday.
He needed a tiebreak to secure the opening set but picked up momentum before crushing it in the third set to get off court in a relatively quick two and a quarter hours.
“I had some early difficulties but he started well,” the winner said. “But once I found my rhythm I felt comfortable on the court.
“That is important for my game. It’s (his game) is there, I just have to show it on the match court.”
With the recent 10-day heatwave now gone, temperatures dropped into the mid-20s Celsius, which should make for more comfortable conditions.
But Zverev is not so sure: “To be honest, I like the heat, I prefer it. My ball flies a lot faster through the air and opponents struggle a bit more.
“I also spend a lot of time in Florida so I’m used to the heat. But we have to make the best of it, things can change within one day.”
Zverev will bid for the semi-finals in a matchup against Rafael Jodar, the prodigy who won an all-Spanish fourth-rounder 4-6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 over Pablo Carreno Busta.
The fightback took nearly three and three-quarter hours and put the 19-year-old into his first last-eight spot in only his second Grand Slam appearance.
He has reached the last eight here for a sixth straight year.
Jodar, ranked No. 707 a year ago, is the fifth man this century to reach the quarters in his main draw debut at the event.
The youngster made a 4-1 start in the opening set but soon found himself in a five-set dogfight against a 34-year-old dealing with a shoulder injury.
The winner of a clay title in March has now taken victory in 19 of his last 22 matches.
“He’s young and incredibly talented,” Zverev said of his next opponent. “He came onto the clay scene in two months.
“He will be a difficult challenge but I’ll be ready for it.”
Main photo:- Favourite Alexander Zverev wins third round match – by ATPTour.com
Roland Garros 2026 Men’s Day 10
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