Defending champion Iga Swiatek breezed into the quarter-finals of the French Open with a quick victory on Monday. Her opponent, Lesia Tsurenko from Ukraine, retired from the match after feeling unwell.
The first set saw Swiatek take a commanding 4-1 lead, prompting Tsurenko to call for a trainer to check her blood pressure and pulse. After a short medical timeout, the match resumed, but Tsurenko decided to quit after losing the following game to love.
During a press conference, Tsurenko expressed her apologies and explained that she had been dealing with a virus for a couple of days. She had hoped to feel better during the match but found herself getting worse, making it impossible for her body to continue playing.
Tsurenko mentioned having a sore throat in her previous match and being able to practice for only 10 minutes the day before. She believed she needed a few more days to recover.
Swiatek's next opponent in the quarter-finals will be Coco Gauff, the American sixth seed. This sets up a rematch of last year's final, which Swiatek won convincingly with a score of 6-1, 6-3. Swiatek will enter the match having spent just over four hours on the court, while Gauff reached the quarter-finals by defeating Anna Karolina Schmiedlova with a 7-5, 6-2 victory.
Swiatek, although satisfied with her campaign so far, acknowledged that winning a match through retirement is not the ideal way to progress. She discussed the importance of managing her physical and mental exhaustion during a Grand Slam tournament and expressed her confidence in handling the demands due to her increased experience.
With her sights set on a third Roland Garros title in four years, Swiatek has been dominant in her matches, dropping only nine games en route to the quarter-finals. While reaching this stage at the French Open may not be a cause for celebration, Swiatek humorously mentioned that being in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon would make her ecstatic.