French Open: Unseeded Frenchwoman Boisson stuns Pegula and joins No. 2 Gauff in the quarterfinals
Loïs Boisson, who had never played at the French Open before, let alone in the prestigious Court Philippe-Chatrier, has stunned the tennis world by reaching the quarterfinals
Paris: Loïs Boisson, who had never played at the French Open before, let alone in the prestigious Court Philippe-Chatrier, has stunned the tennis world by reaching the quarterfinals. The unseeded 21-year-old Frenchwoman, ranked 361st and entering with a wild card, defeated third-seeded American Jessica Pegula 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 in Monday’s fourth-round match.
It was a huge victory, considering Pegula was the U S Open runner-up last year. Boisson, understandably nervous, had to save three break points while serving for the match. After Pegula missed an easy-looking winner at the net, she clutched her head in disbelief, giving Boisson her first match point, the biggest of her career so far. Pegula returned a strong serve to the back of the court, but Boisson unleashed a brilliant forehand winner down the line to seal the win. She raised her arms in celebration, realizing the enormity of the moment.
“I really don’t know what to say, but ‘Thank you to all of you,’” Boisson said during her post-match interview. “Playing on this court with such an atmosphere was really incredible.” The notoriously hard-to-please crowd even laughed when she added, “I’m really happy here. I could stay a long time if you like.” The crowd erupted into chants of “Loïs, Loïs,” and Boisson waved back in appreciation.
Earlier, Boisson had made headlines when British player Harriet Dart apologized after asking the chair umpire to tell her to put deodorant on. Now, she is the only French player—male or female—left in the tournament.
Asked about her ambitions for the rest of the tournament—she will face sixth-seeded Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinals on Wednesday—Boisson responded, “I hope to win, right?” This drew more laughter from the crowd at Court Philippe-Chatrier, which included tournament director Amélie Mauresmo, who has faced criticism over the lack of women in the night sessions.
In other women’s fourth-round action, second-seeded Coco Gauff, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, defeated No. 20 Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-0, 7-5. Over on Court Suzanne-Lenglen, 18-year-old Andreeva, who reached last year’s French Open semifinals, triumphed 7-5, 6-3 against No. 17 Daria Kasatkina. Andreeva playfully threw her wristband at Kasatkina when they met at the net, and Kasatkina joked she would keep it.
No. 7 Madison Keys also advanced, defeating Hailey Baptiste 6-3, 7-5 in an all-American contest. A potential rematch with Gauff looms.
In the men’s fourth-round play, No. 3 Alexander Zverev, last year’s runner-up, led 6-4, 3-0 against Tallon Griekspoor when the unseeded Dutchman retired due to an abdominal strain.
Who is playing Tuesday at Roland-Garros?
The quarterfinals continue, with two men’s and two women’s matches, all on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka will face Olympic champion Qinwen Zheng, followed by defending women’s champion Iga Świątek against No. 13 Elina Svitolina.
In men’s play, eighth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti will take on No. 15-seeded Frances Tiafoe, before defending champion Carlos Alcaraz meets 12th-seeded Tommy Paul.
