Tunisia’s Jabeur Defeats Pera to Reach French Open Quarterfinals

Tunisia's Ons Jabeur celebrates winning her fourth round match of the French Open tennis tournament against Bernarda Pera of the US in two sets, 6-3, 6-1, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 5, 2023. (AP)
Tunisia's Ons Jabeur celebrates winning her fourth round match of the French Open tennis tournament against Bernarda Pera of the US in two sets, 6-3, 6-1, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 5, 2023. (AP)
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Tunisia’s Jabeur Defeats Pera to Reach French Open Quarterfinals

Tunisia's Ons Jabeur celebrates winning her fourth round match of the French Open tennis tournament against Bernarda Pera of the US in two sets, 6-3, 6-1, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 5, 2023. (AP)
Tunisia's Ons Jabeur celebrates winning her fourth round match of the French Open tennis tournament against Bernarda Pera of the US in two sets, 6-3, 6-1, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, Monday, June 5, 2023. (AP)

Bernarda Pera could not win a single game on her serve Monday as she was eliminated in straight sets in the fourth round of the French Open.

Facing seventh-seeded Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, the unseeded American was broken eight times on Court Philippe Chatrier and lost 6-3, 6-1. Jabeur won 15 of 16 points on Pera’s second serve.

Jabeur, the runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open last year, advanced to the quarterfinals at Roland Garros for the first time in her career.

In the men's draw, fourth-seeded Casper Ruud reached the quarterfinals for the second straight year with a 7-6 (3), 7-5, 7-5 win over Nicolas Jarry.

Ruud, the runner-up in Paris last year, delivered a solid display to counter his big-serving Chilean opponent, raising his game on important points in a tense encounter. Ruud saved 14 of 17 break points.

Like Pera, Jabeur struggled with her serve but managed to save eight of the 12 break points she faced.

"She put a lot of pressure on my service," Jabeur said. "I'm pleased that I was able to win my service games when I needed to. ... Hopefully, I'll return well and serve better in my next match."

Pera looked frustrated and tried to shorten rallies, but the strategy did not work. She ended up making 33 unforced errors in total.

Back from a calf injury that hampered her preparations for the tournament, Jabeur became the first Tunisian and Arab woman to progress that far at the French Open. She is the first African woman to reach the last eight at Roland Garros since South Africa’s Amanda Coetzer reached the semifinals in 1997.

Jabeur will next take on another first-time quarterfinalist in Paris — 14th-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia, who prevailed over Sara Sorribes Tormo after a nearly four-hour marathon.

Haddad Maia rallied past her Spanish rival 6-7 (3), 6-3, 7-5 in a match that featured 16 breaks of serve in windy conditions. She became the first Brazilian woman to reach a major quarterfinal since Maria Bueno made the 1968 US Open semifinals.

Sorribes Tormo had progressed to the fourth round thanks to a walkover after her opponent, reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, withdrew with an illness.

She remains in the doubles draw with partner Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic. The pair progressed Sunday after their opponents were forced to forfeit a match when Miyu Kato accidentally hit a ball girl in the neck with a ball after a point.

Later Monday, No. 1-seeded Iga Swiatek will face Lesia Tsurenko at Court Suzanne Lenglen, while No. 6 Coco Gauff takes on Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. A year ago, Swiatek defeated Gauff in the final at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament and they would meet in the quarterfinals this week if they both win their fourth-round match.

In the men's bracket, No. 6 Holger Rune will take on No. 23 Francisco Cerundolo, No. 27 Yoshihito plays Tomas Martin Etcheverry, and No. 22 Alexander Zverev faces No. 28 Grigor Dimitrov in the night session.



Keys Upsets 2-Time Champion Sabalenka in Women’s Final for 1st Grand Slam Title

USA's Madison Keys celebrates with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup after victory against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka during their women's singles final match on day fourteen of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 25, 2025. (AFP)
USA's Madison Keys celebrates with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup after victory against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka during their women's singles final match on day fourteen of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 25, 2025. (AFP)
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Keys Upsets 2-Time Champion Sabalenka in Women’s Final for 1st Grand Slam Title

USA's Madison Keys celebrates with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup after victory against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka during their women's singles final match on day fourteen of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 25, 2025. (AFP)
USA's Madison Keys celebrates with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup after victory against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka during their women's singles final match on day fourteen of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 25, 2025. (AFP)

Madison Keys of the United States upset two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 in the Australian Open final on Saturday night to collect her first Grand Slam title at age 29.

By adding this win over the No. 1-ranked Sabalenka to an elimination of No. 2 Iga Swiatek in the semifinals on Thursday — saving a match point along the way — Keys is the first woman since Serena Williams in 2005 to defeat both of the WTA’s top two players at Melbourne Park.

Keys, ranked 14th and seeded 19th, was playing in her second major final after being the runner-up at the 2017 US Open.

She prevented Sabalenka from earning what would have been her third women’s trophy in a row at the Australian Open — something last accomplished by Martina Hingis from 1997-99 — and her fourth major title overall.

When it ended, Keys covered her face with her hands, then raised her arms. Soon, she was hugging her husband, Bjorn Fratangelo — who has been her coach since 2023 — and other members of her team, before sitting on her sideline bench and laughing.

Sabalenka chucked her racket afterward, then covered her head with a white towel.

The men’s final is Sunday, with defending champion Jannik Sinner against Alexander Zverev. Sinner is seeded No. 1, Zverev No. 2.

Sinner eliminated American Ben Shelton in the semifinals, while Zverev advanced when 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic stopped playing because of an injury.

Keys is the oldest woman to become a first-time major champion since Flavia Pennetta was 33 at the 2015 US Open. This was the 46th Slam appearance for Keys, which ranks as the third-most major tournaments before winning a trophy in the Open era, behind only Pennetta’s 49 and Marion Bartoli’s 47 when she won Wimbledon in 2013.

It was the more accomplished Sabalenka who was shakier at the outset. Keys broke three times in the first set, helped in part by Sabalenka’s four double-faults and 13 total unforced errors.

Don’t for a moment think this was merely an instance of Sabalenka being her own undoing.

Keys certainly had a lot to do with the way things were going, too. She compiled an 11-4 edge in winners in that first set, managing to out-hit the big-hitting Sabalenka repeatedly from the baseline.

For a stretch, it seemed as though every shot off the strings of Keys’ racket — the one she switched to ahead of this season to protect her oft-injured right shoulder and to make it easier to control her considerable power — was landing precisely where she wanted.

Near a corner. On a line. Out of Sabalenka’s reach.

Also important was the way Keys, whose left thigh was taped for the match, covered every part of the court, racing to get to balls and send them back over the net with intent. On one terrific defensive sequence, she sprinted for a forehand that drew a forehand into the net from Sabalenka, capping a break for a 4-1 lead.

Never one to hide her emotions during a match, Sabalenka frequently displayed frustration while trailing on the scoreboard, kicking a ball after netting a volley, dropping her racket after missing an overhead, slapping her leg after an errant forehand.

Sabalenka took a trip to the locker room before the second set, and whether that helped clear her head or slowed Keys’ momentum — or both — the final’s complexion soon changed. Keys’ first-serve percentage dipped from 86% in the first set to 59% in the second. Sabalenka raised her winner total to 13 in the second set and began accumulating, and converting, break points.

When she sent a backhand down the line to force an error by Keys for a break and a 2-1 lead in the second, Sabalenka shook her left fist and gritted her teeth as she walked to the sideline.

When she broke again to go up 4-1, Sabalenka marked the occasion with a long and loud scream while looking in the direction of her team.

By the time the last set arrived, the action was tight and tense, without so much as a single break point until its final game, when Keys came through with one last forehand winner.