Reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza rallied from a set down to beat Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit, while sixth seed Dominika Cibulkova crashed out. Title rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic stormed into the last 32 at Roland Garros, while French No 1 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was out in the first round. Steve Johnson fought back in an emphatic manner while Venus Williams cruised through.
Off court, Venus revealed the gender of Serena’s baby, players slammed Maxime Hamou for forcibly kissing a female reporter and there was a scene from Robinhood. Dive in for the all the headlines and sidelines from the fourth day.
The big news:
Kvitova feelgood return ends
Petra Kvitova said she is eagerly looking ahead to returning to Wimbledon after her “fairytale” French Open comeback ended in the second round.
The Czech star lost 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/5) to American qualifier Bethanie Mattek-Sands at Roland Garros on Wednesday in her first tournament since a horrifying knife attack at her home last December.
“It’s weird. I mean, I’m disappointed, for sure. I came here to win the matches. I’m not here to sit and talk with you guys, but – that’s nice, as well. But I really fought. I mean, after the match, I didn’t feel that bad as normally I probably do,” a smiling Kvitova said after.
Jabeur takes a giant step
Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman to reach the third round of a Grand Slam. The 22-year-old Tunisian, ranked 114th, defeated sixth seed Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia 6-4, 6-3, having earned her place in the main draw as a “lucky loser” after being beaten in qualifying.
However, she admitted her success has caused a dilemma for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Her unexpected run means she will have to defer her Ramadan fasting obligations until her Roland Garros adventure ends.
“I cannot go without eating or drinking, but after the tournament I will give it back, day by day. I won’t be able to do the 30 days but I have time to do it before the next Ramadan,” she explained after her first career win over a top-10 player.
Home hope Tsonga out in first round
French number one Jo-Wilfried Tsonga crashed out of the first round at Roland Garros, going down to Argentina’s Renzo Olivo in four sets after just one game played Wednesday.
World No 91 Olivo was one game away from victory when their match was halted due to darkness on Tuesday, but he broke the 12th seed immediately when play resumed to advance 7-5, 6-4, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4.
The 25-year-old is making his Roland Garros main draw debut and will meet Britain’s Kyle Edmund for a place in the last 32.
Shot of the day:
Borna Coric ultimately lost the contentious match to Steve Johnson, but not before he offered several hot shots (including a complete racquet destruction.) Take a look at this sliding shot-making style and then the racquet smash.
Quotable quotes:
“I don’t give a damn what she says.”
– Garbine Muguruza on Margaret Court’s controversial views on same-sex marriage
“It’s not appropriate no matter whether you’re a tennis player or somebody out on the street. I think the FFT revoked his badge and his credential, then good on them. It’s not behaviour you’d want to be supporting.”
– Samantha Stosur backing the decision to ban French player Maxime Hamou after he forcibly kissed a TV reporter
“I know very well the importance of Jo for you and I’m sorry about my victory, but thanks all the same.”
– Renzo Olivo to the Philippe Chatrier crowd after his win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
From the sidelines:
It’s a girl! Venus reveals Serena’s baby’s gender
Three-time champion Serena Williams, who is expecting her first child later this year, was in the VIP seats on Philippe Chatrier court to support sister Venus in her second round match against Kurumi Nara. And Serena is going to have a baby girl, if her sister’s post-match comments are anything to go by.
“She’s going to call me her favourite aunt. “We all like ‘baby V, baby Lyn, baby Isha’. We all want the baby to be named after us,” the 36-year-old told Eurosport, referring to the names of Serena’s sisters.
Robin Haase turns Robin Hood
During his second round match with Nadal, Haase accidentally hit the chair umpire with his backhand. While the umpire was uninjured, Haase used the moment to jokingly shoot a pretend arrow at the umpire, much to the cheers of the crowd. Incidentally, the umpire Arnaud Gabas, the same guy that Canada’s Denis Shapovalov had hit back in February during a Davis Cup game that was eventually forfeited.
Johnson’s emotional victory and speech
Steve Johnson broke down in tears after beating Borna Coric on a fifth match point, remembering his father who passed away earlier in May. The American was choked up with emotion and broke down near the umpire and the interviewer. “I just miss my Dad. I know he was looking down on me on that last point and gave me the strength to finish it,” he said in a tearful post-match chat.
Skull business
Dominic Thiem, for some reason, was asked in the press conference if he was perturbed to see second round opponent Simone Bolelli’s shirt emblazoned with skull designs, an idea of sponsor Hydrogen. “I was not really scared. I know the brand. It’s a nice brand. They make nice shirts. But I was not scared of the skulls,” said sixth-seeded Thiem who won in straight sets
Number crunching
4 – The number of successive aces served by Milos Raonic to seal victory over Rogério Dutra Silva.
6 out of 30 – The number of break points for Dominic Thiem could convert in his win over Simone Bolelli
40 – Grand Slam match wins for Grigor Dimitrov after beating Tommy Robredo.
With inputs from AFP
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