French Open

Sabalenka triumphs in the “Battle of the Besties”

Aryna Sabalenka (right) won against Paula Badosa.(Bild: AFP/APA/Bertrand GUAY)

Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka and Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina landed favorites' victories in round three of the French Open on Saturday.

Australian Open winner Sabalenka (No. 2) came close to losing her first set of the tournament in the first set, but then defeated Spain's Paula Badosa 7:5, 6:1. Former Wimbledon winner Rybakina (4) prevailed 6:4, 6:2 against Belgium's Elise Mertens (25) despite losing service twice in the first set.

Sabalenka against Badosa was also a duel between two best friends, the organizers had advertised the match as a "Battle of the Besties". Badosa has struggled with back problems in recent years, which is why the former world number two is now only ranked 139th in the world. However, there was nothing she could do against Sabalenka, who got better and better as the match progressed. It was a similar story for Rybakina. "I played with more confidence in the second set and improved my serve," said the Russian-born player.

Love and tennis
Badosa was planning to play mixed doubles with boyfriend Stefanos Tsitsipas later in the day. One day after reaching the round of 16 in the singles, he also wanted to compete in the men's doubles with his brother Petros. The world number nine was asked why he was taking on this extra burden. "It all has to do with love. To have the opportunity to combine love and tennis is really extraordinary," replied the Greek. The love comeback of "Tsitsidosa" is making headlines. The two had split up weeks ago, but have now got back together.

In the men's singles, the Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime (21) won a North American duel with the American Ben Shelton (15) 6:4,6:2,6:1, which was interrupted on Friday, and will now face the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz (3) in the round of 16. As was often the case on previous days, rainy weather from around 1 p.m. only allowed play on the two largest, covered courts.