French Open Day 6 recap- Aryna Sabalenka skipping open press conference and more
Day 6 of the French Open saw the third round of the singles' tournaments take place. Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz had little trouble winning their respective matches as they registered straight-set wins over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Denis Shapovalov respectively.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Karen Khachanov also booked their spots in the fourth round at Roland Garros as they triumphed over Diego Schwartzman and Thanasi Kokkinakis respectively.
In the women's event, Aryna Sabalenka and Daria Kasatkina reached the second week in Paris, as did Sloane Stephens and Elina Svitolina.
There were also a few upsets on the day, most notably the eliminations of Andrey Rublev and Jessica Pegula by Lorenzo Sonego and Elise Mertens respectively. Anastasia Potapova and Hubert Hurkacz were also shown the door out of Roland Garros.
On that note, here are some of the talking points from Day 6 of the French Open 2023.
#1. Aryna Sabalenka opts to sit out open press conference
Aryna Sabalenka has already been on the end of drama after each of her first two matches at the French Open. Following her second-round win, Sabalenka was asked about her support for Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko by a Ukrainian journalist.
The Belarusian refused to answer the questions before carrying on with the press conference.
Sabalenka booked her place in the fourth round of the French Open after beating Kamilla Rakhimova 6-2, 6-2. The Belarusian spoke to a select few reporters after the match instead of having a full-scale press conference, citing her own mental health and well-being as a reason. Sabalenka said that she did not feel safe in press conferences.
"For many months now I have answered these questions at tournaments and been very clear in my feelings and my thoughts. These questions do not bother me after my matches. I know that I have to provide answers to the media on things not related to my tennis or my matches, but on Wednesday I did not feel safe in press conference," Sabalenka said. "I should be able to feel safe when I do interviews with the journalists after my matches. For my own mental health and well-being, I have decided to take myself out of this situation today, and the tournament has supported me in this decision."
The World No. 2 will next take on Sloane Stephens for a place in the quarterfinals of the French Open.
Elina Svitolina nearly broke the "no-handshake" tradition with Russian players
Elina Svitolina's dream run at the French Open continued as she came back from a set down to defeat Anna Blinkova 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 to book her place in the fourth round.
Over the past few months, Ukrainian players refusing to shake hands with their counterparts from Russia and Belarus due to political tensions has been a familiar sight on the tennis court. Svitolina and Blinkova did not shake hands either but shared a seemingly friendly moment on court.
After the match finished, the two players looked at one another before Svitolina gave the Russian a thumbs-up while also telling her "thank you" in her native language. The two also stood on the court for a few seconds before going their separate ways.
Svitolina faces another Russian challenge in the fourth round of the French Open as she will square off against Daria Kasatkina, who has often voiced her disapproval of the ongoing war in Ukraine.
#3. Andrey Rublev and Jessica Pegula bite the dust
Men's seventh seed Andrey Rublev and women's third seed Jessica Pegula were among the top players who were eliminated on Day 6 of the French Open. Rublev took on Lorenzo Sonego in the third round and won the first two sets 7-5, 6-0.
However, the Italian produced a stellar comeback and won the next three sets 6-3, 7-6(5), 6-3 to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam for only the third time in his career. Sonego will next face 11th seed Karen Khachanov.
Rublev lost a tightly-contested match but the same could not be said for Pegula. The 29-year-old was completely outplayed by 28th seed Elise Mertens who beat her 6-1, 6-3 to book her place in the fourth round of the French Open for the third time in her career. Here, she will be up against 2021 runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.