Aryna Sabalenka and Qinwen Zheng renew hostilities on Tuesday as the leading women's player faces the Olympic champion in the French Open quarter-final.
The Belarusian overcame Amanda Anisimova in Sunday's contest to advance to a third consecutive quarter-final in the French capital, where she takes on Olympic champion Zheng, who needed to dig deep to secure her place in the last eight at the expense of Liudmila Samsonova.
Match preview
© Iconsport
Having been expected to be pushed to a decider by Anisimova, Sabalenka handled business in two sets in one hour and 32 minutes, notching a 7-5, 6-3 victory.
While the American player threatened to fight back in both sets, levelling the first at 5-5 after trailing 4-1 and winning a titanic 11-minute game to extend set two, the world No. 1 maintained her focus to secure another straight-set win.
Sabalenka, who had dropped just 10 games en route to the last 16, lost eight in Sunday's match, though this did not prove fatal as the 27-year-old progressed to a third consecutive quarter-final in Paris.
Last year's run ended in defeat at the hands of then-unseeded teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva in three tight sets, and the leading player on the women's tour seeks to avoid a repeat elimination against Zheng.
This year's progress in the French capital has seen Sabalenka reach 10 consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals, emulating Serena Williams's achievement between the 2014 US Open and 2017 Australian Open, and the No. 1 seed hopes to seize her 21st career French Open victory to reach a second semi-final in three years.
© Imago
While Tuesday's opponent is in uncharted territory at Roland Garros, the Chinese superstar found success in the French capital at last year's Olympic Games, defeating Iga Swiatek en route to securing the gold medal.
Nevertheless, Zheng, who exited in rounds two and three in 2023 and 2024, defeated Samsonova 7-6(5), 1-6, 6-3 in two hours and 47 minutes to progress to the quarter-final for the first time on her fifth attempt.
Sunday's titanic victory has seen the Chinese player improve to 10-3 at Roland Garros, as she enters her eighth matchup with Sabalenka, bidding for an 11th win to end the top seed's title dream in Paris.
Including the 22-year-old's run at last year's Games, the five-time WTA champion boasts a 10-match winning streak in the French capital before her first quarter-final at this Slam, underscoring her confidence heading into facing the 20-time titlist.
No Chinese woman since Li Na in 2011 has reached this stage in the French Open, and Zheng, who aims to use her predecessor's ultimate title victory as motivation, seeks only her second-ever Grand Slam semi-final by defeating her nemesis in consecutive meetings.
Tournament so far
Aryna Sabalenka:
First round: vs. Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1 6-0
Second round: vs. Jil Teichmann 6-3 6-1
Third round: vs. Olga Danilovic 6-2 6-3
Round of 16: vs. Amanda Anisimova 7-5 6-3
Qinwen Zheng:
First round: vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4 6-3
Second round: vs. Emiliana Arango 6-2 6-3
Third round: vs. Victoria Mboko 6-3 6-4
Round of 16: vs. Liudmila Samsonova 7-6[5] 1-6 6-3
Head To Head
Rome (2025) - Quarter-finals: Zheng 6-4 6-3
Miami (2025) - Quarter-finals: Sabalenka 6-2 7-5
WTA Finals (2024) - Round Robin: Sabalenka 6-3 6-4
Wuhan Open (2024) - Final: Sabalenka 6-3 5-7 6-3
US Open (2024) - Quarter-final: Sabalenka 6-1 6-2
Australian Open (2024) - Final: Sabalenka 6-3 6-2
US Open (2023) - Quarter-final: Sabalenka 6-1 6-4
Although Sabalenka leads this head-to-head 6-1, Zheng claimed her first victory over the top seed in their most recent meeting in Rome, the final WTA 1000 event before heading to Paris.
That victory in straight sets followed the Chinese player losing six consecutive matchups against the Belarusian, in which she claimed just one set across those defeats — the Wuhan final on home soil.
Beating Sabalenka ended the Olympic champion's four-match losing streak against top-10 players, and while the 22-year-old could not secure another win over an elite player in the Rome semis against Coco Gauff, Zheng aims to secure her sixth success against one of the leading players on the tour in the past year.
We say: Sabalenka to win in two sets
Beating an opponent with the threat of Anisimova in straight sets demonstrated Sabalenka's business-like approach to reaching another quarter-final in the French capital.
Having exited at this stage 12 months ago, the motivated and improved No. 1 player should defeat Zheng in two sets, setting up a tantalising semi-final contest against Elina Svitolina or Swiatek.
