French Open 2023: Novak Djokovic, Elise Mertens and Alcaraz in action – live

Women’s singles Pavlyuchenkova broke straight back, but now Mertens has two break points to make it 2-1 in the second set. She needs just one, with Pavlyuchenkova sending a backhand long: Mertens leads 6-3, 2-1

Men’s singles On Suzanne Lenglen, the Italian Lorenzo Sonego has taken the first set 6-1 against the 11th seed Karen Khachanov. The winner of that one will play Novak Djokovic or Juan Pablo Varillas in the quarter-finals.

Mertens breaks! An emphatic forehand seals the deal, and she’s in complete control now.

Elise Mertens has taken the first set 6-3 against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and as I type she has two break points in the first game of the second set.

Talking of favourites, here’s a Reuters report on Iga Swiatek’s latest masterclass

Iga Swiatek underlined her credentials as a firm favourite for the French Open title on Saturday after serving up double bagels yet again with a 6-0 6-0 win, but the world number one refused to be swept up in the ‘Iga’s Bakery’ social media craze.

A ruthless Swiatek thrashed Wang Xinyu without dropping a game to cruise into the fourth round, the second time in a month she had won by the same scoreline after beating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in Rome.

The 22-year-old Pole has dropped only eight games in three matches in Paris this year, while nine opponents have lost at least one set 6-0 to her this year.
Saturday’s result was no different as she beat Wang in 51 minutes. But when a question about “Iga’s Bakery” was put to Swiatek after her victory, her smile vanished before the top seed said she wanted to remain respectful to her opponents.

“Look, I don’t want to really talk about that. I really get why people do that because it’s fun and tennis is entertainment and everything,” Swiatek told reporters.

“But from the players’ point of view, I want to be respectful to my opponents. You don’t see the stuff that is behind the scenes – sometimes it’s not easy to play such matches and sometimes it’s not easy also for the opponents.

“I don’t want to talk about the bakery. Twitter can talk about it, but I’m just going to be focussed on tennis.”

Swiatek will next face Lesia Tsurenko, who lost 6-2 6-0 to her in Rome last month. The Ukrainian described playing the number one as “one of the biggest challenges on tour”.

“I just had a match against her in Rome, which was good just to feel how she’s playing and to feel the speed of her shots,” Tsurenko said. “It was a good lesson for me, so I will try to play better this time.”

Tumaini Carayol’s day seven report

Preamble