Canadians Felix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov and Leylah Fernandez have advanced to the third round of the French Open.
Montreal’s Auger-Aliassime, the men’s No. 21 seed, defeated German qualifier Henri Squire 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in second-round action at the clay-court tennis Grand Slam in Paris.
Auger-Aliassime fired 12 aces in the match, including one to set up match point.
He took a commanding 4-1 lead in the fourth set with a break. After Squire broke in the following game, Auger-Aliassime restored his lead with his seventh break of the match then served out for the victory.
Auger-Aliassime will next face the winner of a match between Japan’s Kei Nishikori and 15th seed Ben Shelton of the United States.
WATCH | Auger-Aliassime outlasts German qualifier in 4 sets at French Open:
Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime beat Germany’s Henri Squire 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the third round at Roland-Garros.
Shapovalov, from Richmond Hill, Ont., rallied past No. 25 seed Frances Tiafoe of the United States 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.
Shapovalov used an overpowering serve — he had 21 aces to Tiafoe’s one — and picked up a key break to go up 5-4 in the fourth set.
The Canadian will next face eighth seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland. Hurkacz is 4-1 in his career against Shapovalov, with all five matches contested on hard court.
Both Auger-Aliassime and Shapovalov hard to wait out delays as rain in Paris continued to affect play on the outdoor courts at Roland-Garros.
WATCH | Shapovalov needs 4 sets to dispose of Tiafoe:
Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., upset the 25th seeded Frances Tiafoe of the United States, 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 to advance to the third round at Roland-Garros.
Fernandez, seeded 31st in the women’s draw, downed China’s Xiyu Wang 6-3, 6-4.
The match was completed after being suspended Wednesday due to rain with Fernandez up 5-3.
Fernandez defended five of the six break points she faced while breaking Wang three times on five chances. The Canadian scored the only break of the second set to go up 4-3, then overcame double break point and break point to take the match.
Fernandez will next face eighth seed Ons Jabeur of Tunisia. Jabeur has won all three of her previous matches against Fernandez, most recently at this year’s Madrid Open.
Bianca Andreescu of Mississauga, Ont., was scheduled to face No. 23 seed Anna Kalinskaya of Russia later Thursday.
WATCH | Fernandez prevails in straight sets after rain delay:
After play was suspended due to rain on Wednesday, with Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., leading 5-3, Fernandez went on to defeat China’s Wang Xiyu 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday, and advance to the third round at Roland-Garros.
Sabalenka, Medvedev move on
Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka stayed out of the rain and moved into the third round.
The second-seeded Sabalenka beat Japanese qualifier Moyuka Uchijima 6-2, 6-2 on Court Philippe Chatrier as showers again affected play at Roland-Garros.
The inclement weather, which is expected to last for much of the day, halted play on all courts not equipped with a roof for the third consecutive day.
Sabalenka, who reached the French Open semifinals last year, will next face Paula Badosa, a close friend and her doubles partner for this year’s clay-court Grand Slam tournament.
“It’s always tough to play your friend,” Sabalenka said. “But we know how to separate court and life.”
In other matches:
- No. 4 Elena Rybakina, the Wimbledon champion in 2022, advanced by beating Arantxa Rus 6-3, 6-4.
- Fifth-seeded Daniil Medvedev also reached the third round after his opponent, Miomir Kecmanovic, retired while trailing 6-1, 5-0. The Serbian player decided to quit the match after 55 minutes of play.
- Three days after defeating Rafael Nadal, No. 4 Alexander Zverev beat David Goffin 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-2 on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
“The crowd is always unbelievable in Paris, since we got the two new roofs it’s even more electric,” Zverev said. “When you guys are rooting for me, it’s even better.”
No booze, for fans at Roland-Garros
One player said a French Open spectator spat chewed gum toward him. Another, No. 1-ranked Iga Swiatek, chastised the crowd at the main stadium for making too much noise during points.
So the folks in charge of the Grand Slam event at Roland-Garros decided enough was enough: Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo said Thursday that, Sacre bleu!, fans now are banned from having alcohol while attending matches. Which, not all that surprisingly, was not necessarily a huge hit with some of those paying for tickets.
“They should let us drink,” said Ana Malevukovic, a 37-year-old plastic surgeon from Serbia, standing near a bar selling a “garden spritz” outside Court Philippe Chatrier. “It’s allowed everywhere else. Why shouldn’t it be allowed at a tennis match?”
In another part of her effort to rein in the rowdiness at what is supposedly a genteel sport, Mauresmo, who won two Grand Slam titles as a player more than a decade ago, said security would be tightened around the site on Day 5 of the major tournament held annually in southwest Paris.
This is not unprecedented in sports. Just one, more extreme, example: Drinking alcohol while in view of the field was banned from all soccer matches in Britain nearly 40 years ago following years of fan violence. Go to a game there nowadays, and the stadium concourses are packed with people guzzling beers.
The ban follows concerns about the behaviour of those watching the competition.
It was David Goffin, a Belgian, who complained after his first-round victory Tuesday against a French foe on Court 14 — capacity: 2,158 — that he was “insulted for 3 1/2 hours” by the partisan supporters. The worst part? The piece of gum sent in his direction during the match.
“It’s a total lack of respect. I think it’s just too much. It’s becoming soccer. Soon there’ll be smoke bombs, hooligans and fights in the stands. I think it’s getting ridiculous. Some people are there more to cause trouble than to enjoy the atmosphere,” Goffin said, noting he thought things are worse at the French Open than the U.S. Open, Wimbledon or Australian Open.