Rybakina and Sabalenka have made the French Open quarterfinal.
Elena Rybakina ousted Elina Svitolina in a highly-anticipated matchup to reach the French Open quarterfinal, while Aryna Sabalenka also made the last eight following a very routine win over Emma Navarro.
While fans were hoping that Rybakina and Svitolina would deliver a thriller, the fourth-seeded Kazakh made sure to avoid any drama after ousting the Ukrainian former world No. 3 6-4 6-3.
On the other side, Sabalenka gave no chance to chance to Emma Navarro – who is enjoying a breakthrough year – as the two-time Grand Slam champion defeated the 23-year-old American 6-2 6-3.
For a place in the French Open semifinal, Rybakina plays against No. 12 seed Jasmine Paolini, who came back from a set down to beat Elina Avanesyan 4-6 6-0 6-1.
Meanwhile, Sabalenka plays against the winner of the match between Mirra Andreeva and Varvara Gracheva.
How Rybakina overcame Svitolina?
At the start of the match, Rybakina and Svitolina traded breaks and were tied to one game apiece after the opening two games. But after blowing an early first-set break, Rybakina broke Svitolina again in the fifth game to go 3-2 up and then just held on to her serve for the remainder of the set.
Up by a set, Rybakina made a lightning start to the second set after breaking Svitolina in the first and fifth games for a 4-1 lead. Down by a set and a double break, Svitolina managed to get one break back in the sixth game. But with Rybakina leading 5-3 and Svitolina serving to stay in the match, the Kazakh earned her fifth break of the match to complete a two-set win in an hour and nine minutes of play.
How Sabalenka beat Navarro?
Right from the start of the match, Sabalenka had the upper hand on No. 22 seed Navarro as the Belarusian started the match with a 4-0 lead before serving out for the first set in the eighth game.
After easily winning the first set, Sabalenka also started the second set with an early break and a 3-1 lead. Then, Sabalenka missed out on a chance to go up by a double break in the fifth and seventh games but she broke Navarro again in the ninth game when the American was serving to stay in the match.