Paris, June: Mirra Andreeva defeated Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open on Wednesday to become the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist in 27 years, while fourth seed Elena Rybakina was knocked out by Italy’s Asma Paolini.
17-year-old Andreeva looked set to hold off Australian Open champion Sabalenka, winning 6-7 (5/7), 6-4, 6-4 to reach the final. – Four meetings with the Italian artist Paolini.
The Russian is the youngest woman to reach the last four at a Slam event since Martina Hingis at the 1997 US Open and the youngest woman at Roland Garros since Hingis that year.
“My coach and I had a plan today, but I don’t remember anything. I just tried to play as I felt,” Andreyeva said.
Sabalenka called several medical appointments when she complained of not feeling well, and Andreeva, a maiden Slam quarter-finalist, finally put her patience to good use.
World number 38 delighted the Philippe Chatier crowd to an unforgettable victory in style after two and a half hours with a superb lobbed winner.
Sabalenka is targeting her seventh consecutive Slam semi-final and has won 11 consecutive tournaments since her second title in Melbourne earlier this year.
Andreeva will play 12th seed Paolini for a place in Thursday’s final after a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 win over former Wimbledon champion Rybakina.
Paolini committed just one unforced error in a dominant opening set, but her level dropped after taking a 4-3 lead in the second, allowing Rybakina to force a break.
But she rattled off a high-scoring third set that included five breaks to claim a deserved victory, before a derailed Rybakina crashed out of the tournament with 48 unforced errors.
The 28-year-old Paolini, who is playing in his first Grand Slam quarter-final, continued a good week for Italian tennis after Jannik Sinner reached his first French Open semi-final and became the men’s world number one.
This is the first time Italy has reached the men’s and women’s singles semifinals in the Slam event in the Open era.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” said Paolini, who has never gone past the second round of the French Open and has won only four Grand Slams in his career this year.
Favorite Iga Swiatek plays US Open champion Coco Gauff in the other women’s semifinal on Thursday.
– Zverev is in his fourth consecutive semifinal –
Alexander Zverev reached his fourth consecutive semifinal in Paris with a 6-4, 7-6, (7/5), 6-4 victory over Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the night session.
Germany will face 2022 and 2023 tournament winner Kasper Ruud on Friday after Novak Djokovic was handed a tour of Norway following a knee injury.
The fourth winner Zverev is still in the fight for his Grand Slam title.
The 27-year-old was not at his best against De Minaur – making 48 unforced errors and just 20 winners – but he dug deep at the right moments, before firing away in the second set. pause for a moment.
He was unable to serve out the match in the ninth game of the third set, but broke a few minutes later.
“I’m happy in another semifinal, I hope I can win one,” said Zverev, who has lost six previous Grand Slam semifinals, including three at Roland Garros.
Zverev played in the shadow of a trial taking place in Berlin, where he was accused of assaulting his former daughter.
De Minaur, seeded 11th, did not even make it past the second round in Paris earlier this year, winning just three of 10 matches.
Djokovic was due to face Ruud in a repeat of last year’s final, but the 24-time Grand Slam champion’s title defense ended abruptly when he suffered a knee injury in his last 16 win over Francisco Cerundolo.
Media reports suggest that Djokovic will undergo surgery, which will doubt his participation in Wimbledon and the Paris Olympics.
Defending champion Djokovic will take on the world number one next week and the Italian will face Carlos Alcaraz in the other men’s semi-final.
Sunday will mark his first French Open title since 2016, with Ruud the only man to reach the final with a draw.
