World No. 1 Swiatek survives scare at French Open; Medvedev and Tsitsipas crash

Poland's Iga Swiatek in action during her 4th round match against China's Qinwen Zheng on May 30, 2022. (REUTERS/Dylan Martinez)
Short Url
Updated 31 May 2022
Follow

World No. 1 Swiatek survives scare at French Open; Medvedev and Tsitsipas crash

  • Tsitsipas, the 2021 runner-up to Novak Djokovic, was defeated by Danish teenager Holger Rune
  • Swiatek survived a scare at the hands of injured Chinese teenager Zheng Qinwen

PARIS: Women’s top seed Iga Swiatek took her winning streak to 32 matches in the fourth round of the French Open on Monday, while men's world number two Daniil Medvedev and fourth-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas crashed out.

Swiatek, of Poland, survived a scare at the hands of injured Chinese teenager Zheng Qinwen, dropping the first set before going on to make the quarter-finals.
Swiatek prevailed 6-7 (5/7), 6-0, 6-2 to equal the third best winning streak this century of 32 matches set by Justine Henin 14 years ago.
“She played amazing tennis,” said Swiatek. “I am proud to be still in the tournament.”




China's Qinwen Zheng during her 4th round match against Poland's Iga Swiatek on May 30, 2022. (REUTERS/Dylan Martinez)

Qinwen said severe stomach cramps ruined her hopes of completing a shock win against world number one Swiatek.

“I couldn’t go against my nature. I wish I can be a man so that I don’t have to suffer from this. It’s tough,” Zheng said, in reference to her menstrual pain.

In an 82-minute opening set, 74th-ranked Zheng saved five set points, had two of her own and then clawed her way back from 2/5 down in the tiebreak to stun the top seed.
As the 2020 Roland Garros champion’s streak looked in peril, Zheng required a medical timeout at 0-3 in the second set for a leg injury.

Zheng, who had defeated 2018 champion Simona Halep on her way to the fourth round, returned with her right thigh heavily strapped and quickly dropped the second set.
Swiatek carved out a double break in the decider against her tiring opponent, whose injury contributed to her 46 unforced errors, and will face US 11th seed Jessica Pegula for a place in the semifinals.

Pegula downed Romania’s Irina-Camelia Begu 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 to add a last-eight place in Paris to similar runs at the Australian Open in 2021 and 2022.
Daria Kasatkina and compatriot Veronika Kudermetova ensured there will be a Russian in the semifinals after they set-up a last-eight clash.
Kasatkina, seeded 20th, took advantage of Italian Camila Giorgi’s 37 unforced errors to win 6-2, 6-2.
Kudermetova reached her first Grand Slam quarter-final as the world number 29 came back from a set down to defeat 2018 semifinalist Madison Keys of the United States, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1.

‘Best tennis in recent weeks'

US Open champion Medvedev was beaten by 20th seed Marin Cilic 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 in just 1hr 45 min on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Tsitsipas, the 2021 runner-up to Novak Djokovic, was defeated by Danish teenager Holger Rune 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 earlier in the day.
Cilic will face Russia’s Andrey Rublev in his third career Roland Garros quarter-final.




Croatia's Marin Cilic in action during his 4th round match against Russia's Daniil Medvedev at the French Open on May 30, 2022. (REUTERS/Dylan Martinez)

“It’s one of the most beautiful matches of my career, it was fantastic from the first to the last point,” said Cilic, adding he is playing his “best tennis in recent weeks.”
Medvedev had enjoyed his best run in Paris 12 months ago when he reached the quarter-finals.
He hadn’t dropped a set at this year’s tournament but was completely outplayed by the 33-year-old Cilic who broke serve five times.
Medvedev was unable to carve out a single break point as the Croatian got the better of the Russian for the first time in four meetings.
Rublev made the quarter-finals for the second time when Italian opponent Jannik Sinner retired with a left knee injury with the Russian 1-6, 6-4, 2-0 ahead.
Rune became the first Danish man to reach the French Open quarter-finals when he shocked Tsitsipas.
Rune, just 19 and ranked 40, swept to a memorable win on the back of 54 winners.




Denmark's Holger Rune in action during his 4th round match against Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas at the French Open on May 30, 2022. (REUTERS/Dylan Martinez)

With fellow 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz already into the quarter-finals, it’s the first time two teenagers have made it this far in Paris since Hendrik Dreekman and Andrei Medvedev 28 years ago.
In a tense fourth set, Rune gave up a 5-2 lead and fought off three more break points in the 10th game before securing victory when Tsitsipas hit long.
“I was very nervous and I knew that if I went away from my tactics I would lose,” said Rune, who won his maiden ATP title in Munich in the build-up to Paris.
“I told myself just stick to the plan and that gave me a confidence boost. It’s so great to still be here.”
Tsitsipas said he would be ready for Rune when they meet again.
“I can see something different next time with this opponent. I’m pretty convinced I can do way better,” said the 23-year-old.
Rune will next face eighth-seeded Casper Ruud who became the first Norwegian man to reach the last eight with a 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 win against Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz.

The 23-year-old is also into his first ever Grand Slam quarter-final as he continues an impressive season which has seen him win two clay-court titles.

 


Shakib Al-Hasan shines as MI Emirates down table-toppers Desert Vipers by 4 wickets 

Updated 22 December 2025
Follow

Shakib Al-Hasan shines as MI Emirates down table-toppers Desert Vipers by 4 wickets 

  • All-round performance helped move the team back to second in the points table

DUBAI: MI Emirates registered a composed four-wicket victory over the table toppers Desert Vipers to seal their third straight win in the DP World ILT20 Season 4 at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. After a disciplined bowling performance in the first innings, MI Emirates overcame early pressure before Kieron Pollard and Shakib Al-Hasan guided the team to victory.

The Desert Vipers managed to score 124 courtesy of Dan Lawrence’s gritty 35 off 34 balls, but MI Emirates navigated a tricky chase with relative ease. With the ball, spinner Al-Hasan’s two wickets for 14 runs led the charge and kept the Vipers in check, before Zahoor Khan’s death bowling ensured the total remained below par.

In reply, MI Emirates stumbled in the powerplay and lost momentum in the middle overs, but Pollard’s 26 off 15 balls flipped the contest decisively. Even after his dismissal, Al-Hasan held firm to see the chase through, striking the winning boundary to complete a controlled four-wicket win with 15 balls to spare. 

MI Emirates endured a slow powerplay as the Vipers applied sustained pressure. David Payne set the tone early, removing Jonny Bairstow (5 off 5), while Lockie Ferguson struck to dismiss Muhammad Waseem (18 off 13). They finished the powerplay with 35/2 on the board.

The batting side lost momentum through the middle overs as the Vipers bowlers tightened the screws. Nicholas Pooran (17 off 17) mounted a brief counterattack with two sixes but was trapped LBW by Lawrence. Wickets fell at regular intervals, including Tom Banton (10 off 10) being bowled by a sharp Qais Ahmad delivery.

Then, skipper Pollard swung the momentum decisively, taking Ahmad apart with a pair of sixes in the 15th over that turned the chase in MI Emirates’ favor. He was eventually dismissed by Matiullah Khan, but Al-Hasan (17* off 25) held his nerve, anchoring the finish before striking the winning boundary off Matiullah to close the chase at 124/6 in 17.3 overs.

In the first innings, the Vipers made a subdued start in the powerplay, as Chris Woakes was excellent up front, conceding just 15 runs from his three overs. Allah Ghazanfar struck the key blow by removing Max Holden (20 off 18). Fakhar Zaman (13 off 13) tried to build momentum, but the lack of boundaries and regular dots ensured the Vipers were restricted to 35/1 after six overs.

MI Emirates tightened their grip through the middle overs as Al-Hasan struck twice in a miserly spell to remove Zaman and Sam Curran (4 off 4), conceding just eight runs in two overs. Arab Gul added to the pressure by dismissing Hasan Nawaz (13 off 19), leaving the Vipers reeling after losing three wickets in as many overs and the score at 54/4 at the halfway mark of their innings.

Lawrence and Jason Roy (14 off 18) showed intent in patches, adding a cautious stand of 42 runs in 40 balls, but boundaries were scarce. Al-Hasan capped an outstanding spell, leaving the Vipers with little impetus. Khan delivered a decisive final over, finishing with two for 17, as regular wickets in the death overs ensured the Vipers were kept in check, leaving MI Emirates a manageable target of 125 to seal the chase.

Al-Hasan said: “It was a surface that suited the spinners, and the focus was on hitting the right areas consistently. I was able to do that today, which was pleasing. I’m glad it helped the team. Batting wasn’t easy on this pitch either. With so many powerful hitters in our lineup, someone needed to play the anchoring role, and I was happy to take on that responsibility to make sure we finished the chase.”

Desert Vipers stand-in skipper Curran commented: “It was another low-scoring game on a tricky surface. The pitch was slow, and facing a side like MI Emirates, who have high-quality spinners with a lot of variation, made it even tougher. Despite that, I thought our bowlers put in a strong effort. With qualification already secured, we chose to rotate the squad, and what happened to Lockie reinforces the importance of managing workloads.”