PARIS: Aryna Sabalenka overcame a sluggish start to defeat close friend Paula Badosa 7-5, 6-1 on Saturday to take her place in the last 16 of the French Open.
Former world number two Badosa led 5-3 in the first set but two-time Australian Open champion Sabalenka reeled off 10 of the final 11 games to sweep into the second week for the second year in a row.
Sabalenka, a semifinalist in Paris in 2023, has made at least the last four at her past six Grand Slams and is expected to be Iga Swiatek’s chief rival in the Pole’s bid for a fourth French Open title.
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He has 16 career ATP titles although the last came in Geneva in 2017.
Wawrinka reached a high of third in the world in 2014, but he has struggled with injuries in past years and is now ranked 157th.
His 582 tour-level wins are fourth most among active players, just behind Gael Monfils, who also plans to retire at the end of next year.
Wawrinka won Olympic gold in doubles alongside Federer at Beijing in 2008 and helped deliver a first Davis Cup triumph for Switzerland in 2014.
He is due to begin his final season in Perth at the United Cup, which starts on January 2.
Sabalenka reaches French Open last 16
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Sabalenka reaches French Open last 16
- Sabalenka, a semifinalist in Paris in 2023, has made at least the last four at her past six Grand Slams
Three-time Grand Slam winner Wawrinka to retire in 2026
- “It’s time to write the final chapter of my career as a professional tennis player. 2026 will be my last year on tour,” Wawrinka posted Friday
- His 582 tour-level wins are fourth most among active players
PARIS: Stan Wawrinka says the 2026 season will be his last as the three-time Grand Slam singles champion aims to finish his career “on the best note possible.”
“Every book needs an ending. It’s time to write the final chapter of my career as a professional tennis player. 2026 will be my last year on tour,” Wawrinka posted Friday on social media.
Wawrinka, who turns 41 in March, won the Australian Open in 2014, the French Open a year later and the US Open in 2016, at a time when Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic were dominating men’s tennis.
He has 16 career ATP titles although the last came in Geneva in 2017.
Wawrinka reached a high of third in the world in 2014, but he has struggled with injuries in past years and is now ranked 157th.
His 582 tour-level wins are fourth most among active players, just behind Gael Monfils, who also plans to retire at the end of next year.
Wawrinka won Olympic gold in doubles alongside Federer at Beijing in 2008 and helped deliver a first Davis Cup triumph for Switzerland in 2014.
He is due to begin his final season in Perth at the United Cup, which starts on January 2.
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