3 Break-out stars at French Open 2024 ft. Jasmine Paolini
The French Open concluded yesterday, June 9, with Carlos Alcaraz winning his first ever title at Roland Garros, courtesy of a win over Alexander Zverev in the final. In the women’s division, Iga Swiatek claimed her fourth title in five years by beating Jasmine Paolini in the final.
Overall, there were not too many big upsets in the men’s draw, but, the women's tournament featured a few unexpected results. Some new players succeeded in leaving their mark on the tournament by performing way better than expected. In this article, we will take a look at three players who had a break-out run in the French Open:
#3. Corentin Moutet:
Thanks to his brilliant performances over the last year, Corentin Moutit jumped 23 places, from No. 79 to No. 56 in the ATP rankings. The Frenchman won his first three matches at the French Open this year, all in four sets, to advance to the fourth round.
He beat Nicolas Jerry, the 16th seed and the Italian Open runner-up, in the opening round. He then beat Alexander Shevchenko and Sebastian Ofner in the second and third rounds, respectively.
In the fourth round, Moutet met 2nd seed, Jannik Sinner. Moutet won the first set before Sinner bounced back to win the next three sets. Despite the defeat, Moutet gave a good account of himself in the tournament.
#2. Mirra Andreeva:
Andreeva, the 17-year-old from Russia, is the newest teenage sensation in women’s tennis. This year, she surprised everyone by making it to the French Open semifinals. She won her first five matches, beating two seeded players in the form of 19th seed Victoria Azarenka and second seed Aryna Sabalenka.
Her win over Sabalenka in three sets in the quarterfinal stunned the tennis fraternity. However, she lost her semifinal clash against Jasmine Paolini in straight sets.
She had only competed in four Grand Slam events before this year's French Open, but it hardly seemed like that. As a result of her good performance, she has now scaled a career-high ranking of No. 23. With a long career ahead of her, one can expect many more good displays from Andreeva in the future.
#1. Jasmine Paolini:
Paolini entered the tournament as the 12th seed, but not many expected her to reach the final. The 28-year-old had won only two WTA titles ahead of the tournament. However, much to the surprise of fans and pundits alike, she upset fourth-seeded Elena Rybakina in three sets during this year's Roland Garros quarterfinal.
She also prevailed in straight sets against the teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva in the semifinals. However, in the final, she came up against Iga Swiatek, who has an impeccable record on clay. Paolini couldn't continue her dream run, but it was a tournament that she can be proud of.
Prior to this tournament, she had not made it past the fourth round in any of the Grand Slam competitions she participated in. Paolini’s run enabled her to reach a career-high ranking of World No. 7 at the end of the tournament. The 28-year-old Italian also made it to the women's doubles final, but ultimately fell short against her rivals.