French Open PIX: Sinner stuns Zverev; Halep, Bertens ousted

IMAGES from Day 8 of the French Open, at Roland Garros, on Sunday.

Italian teenager Jannik Sinner became the first debutant to reach the French Open quarter-finals since Rafael Nadal in 2005 when he downed German sixth seed Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 on Sunday.

The 19-year-old, who will also be the youngest male player since Novak Djokovic in 2006 to feature in the last eight at Roland Garros, will face 12-times champion Nadal for a place in the semi-finals.

The South Tyrolian, winner of last year’s NextGen ATP Finals, dropped a set for the first time in the tournament but he never lost his composure.

Sinner ended it on a windswept Court Suzanne Lenglen with a booming forehand that Zverev could only return into the net.

Frenchman Hugo Gaston, who plays later on Sunday, and German Daniel Altmaier, on court on Monday, are other debutants looking to reach the last eight in Paris.

Nadal crushes qualifier Korda

Rafael Nadal blew away American qualifier Sebastian Korda 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 to romp into the quarter-finals and close in on a record-extending 13th title at Roland Garros.

With the sun out and the wind up on Court Philippe Chatrier it always looked like mission impossible for the 213th-ranked Korda, and so it proved in a one-sided fourth round match.

Nadal has lost no sets and only 23 games in reaching his 42nd Grand Slam quarter-final and is yet to face a seed.

Rising Italian Jannick Sinner, the first player since Nadal in 2005 to reach the quarter-finals on his debut, is next.

“I’m in the quarter-finals without losing a set and having very positive scores. So I can’t complain at all,” the 34-year-old, who needs one more Grand Slam title to equal Roger Federer’s 20, told reporters.

“Today the conditions out there were so difficult to play a fantastic match, the wind was very high. But in general terms I am very happy.”

The 20-year-old Korda, son of 1992 runner-up Petr, had enjoyed a dream run in his first Tour-level event on clay and was up against his idol -- the man he named his cat after.

If he was to stand any chance of making it at all competitive he needed a good start, and he will rue the fact that he lost the first two games despite having game points.

Nadal, who needed nine minutes to hold serve in the first game, admitted that had been a crucial factor in ensuring this was a Sunday stroll.

Teenager Swiatek bundles top seed Halep out

Polish teenager Iga Swiatek booted top seed Simona Halep out of the French Open on Sunday with a crushing 6-1, 6-2 victory to make her maiden Grand Slam quarter-final.

Halep came into the fourth round clash on a 17-match unbeaten streak having defeated the 19-year-old Swiatek, ranked 54th in the world, 6-1, 6-0 in 45 minutes at the same stage last year in the claycourt Grand Slam at Roland Garros.

"I wasn't experienced at all then. That was my first match in a big stadium," Swiatek said in her on-court interview, after wiping away tears. "I was pretty stressed."

"Since then I have made huge progress and I have played few big matches ... it helped me a lot. And right now I think I can handle the pressure."

Swiatek avenged that morale-sapping defeat and her victory under the closed roof of Court Philippe Chatrier in 68 minutes was no less impressive against the 2018 French Open champion, ranked number two in the world.

Halep arrived in Paris having won claycourt tournaments in Prague and Rome and with the Australian world number one deciding against defending her French Open title, the 29-year-old was the overwhelming favourite to add a third Grand Slam trophy to her cabinet.

But she watched in disbelief as Swiatek started with aggression and painted the red clay with winners, often leaving Halep rooted to the spot on the court.

Swiatek hit 30 winners as opposed to the 12 managed by Halep, while the Polish player did not face a single breakpoint on her service games.

"I don't know what happened actually, I felt like I was playing perfectly. I was so focused the whole match, even I am surprised that I can do that," Swiatek said.

The former Wimbledon junior champion will next meet Italian qualifier Martina Trevisan, who also scripted an upset by defeating fifth-seeded Dutch Kiki Bertens 6-4, 6-4.

Qualifier Trevisan stuns Bertens to reach last eight

Italian Martina Trevisan became the first qualifier in eight years to reach the quarter-finals of the women's draw at the French Open by beating Dutch fifth seed Kiki Bertens 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday.

The world number 159 played aggressively throughout to set up a meeting with Polish teenager Iga Swiatek, who knocked out top seed Simona Halep.

"I came here two weeks ago to play the qualifiers and today I'm here in the quarter finals. I can't believe it," said Trevisan, who will break into the top 100 of the WTA rankings on Monday.

"I'm really honoured to play on this court with Bertens; she's an incredible player."

After a mastering the opening set, Trevisan went 3-0 up in the second before Bertens stepped up a gear to break back.

Trevisan, however, held her nerve and wrapped up victory with an exquisite lob on her third match point on Bertens's serve.

Svitolina breezes past Garcia

Third seed Elina Svitolina ended the run of local hope Caroline Garcia in the French Open with a 6-1, 6-3 win to move into her third quarter-final at Roland Garros.

On a day that the women’s draw lost top seed Simona Halep and fifth seed Kiki Bertens, Svitolina, who reached the last eight in 2015 and 2017, put in a solid performance to be the highest-ranked player remaining in the claycourt Grand Slam.

Garcia had come from a set and a break down to win her past three meetings against fellow 26-year-old Svitolina, but there was no such repeat as the Ukrainian broke her opponent’s serve six times to complete her victory in 63 minutes.

Svitolina converted her first match point when Garcia sent a forehand wide, and she will play the winner of the match between Argentine qualifier Nadia Podoroska and Czech Barbora Krejcikova for a place in the semi-finals.