Alexander Zverev battled his way back into the French Open semi-finals a year after suffering a season-ending ankle injury.

The German left Philippe Chatrier in a wheelchair 12 months ago after being forced to retire during a compelling last-four clash with Rafael Nadal.

Zverev had struggled since returning to the tour in January but has buried his demons on the Parisian clay and fought for three hours and 22 minutes to make it past surprise package Tomas Etcheverry 6-4 3-6 6-3 6-4.

“That was the most difficult year of my life,” he said.

“I love tennis with all my heart. I’m so happy to be back at this stage, I’m so happy to be able to play for a Roland Garros final again. I can’t be happier.”

Argentinian Etcheverry, 23, did himself huge credit in the biggest match of his career, wowing the Philippe Chatrier crowd with thumping winners and fighting to the end.

But it was Zverev who was just the stronger in the big moments, saving six of the nine break points he faced to make it to the last four here for the third year in a row.

Zverev said of his opponent: “He’s playing incredible tennis, he reminds me a lot of (Juan Martin) Del Potro, the way he hits his forehand especially. If he continues playing like this he’s going in the quarter-finals here a lot more often for sure and I think he can be top 10.

“I just had to remember that I have a pair of balls that I can use. I hope, I think I deserved to win. I’m just happy to be through.”

A visibly frustrated Andy Murray eventually saw off qualifier Bu Yunchaokete to reach the third round of the Surbiton Trophy as he continues his preparations ahead of Wimbledon.

The 36-year old skipped the French Open to focus on his grass-court season and give himself the best preparation for Wimbledon next month.

Murray, a two-time Wimbledon champion, is ranked 43rd and needs to climb around 10 positions to be seeded in SW19.

He increased those chances with a hard-fought 7-6 (1) 6-4 win over Yunchaokete, who is 130 places below Murray in the rankings.

Internet issues on the umpire’s scoring system led to a slight delay in starting the match and it took Murray a while to get going once things got under way.

As with his first round win over Chung Hyeon on Monday, Murray needed little time to hit his stride as he looked to back up his claims that he remains among the top 10 players on his favourite surface.

Chinese qualifier Yunchaokete had beaten Briton Harry Wendelken in the opening round but the step up in class left him at the mercy of Murray.

Two aces saw Murray take the third game and he broke serve in the sixth only to have Yunchaokete break back immediately, with the Briton throwing his racket to the ground in frustration.

Yunchaokete was starting to grow in confidence as he held to love to leave Murray grumbling away at the other end.

Two set points for Murray were not taken and he greeted another error with a cry of “I don’t know what is going on with my game” as the first set headed into a tie-break.

The self-administered pep-talk seemed to work as Murray dominated, this time letting out a roar of joy as he took the first set.

The outbursts of anger continued in the second set with both players still unable to put clear distance between the scores.

Murray would eventually maintain a high enough level to see off the spirited Yuchanokete and advance into the next stage as he aims to go one better than his semi-final place at Surbiton 12 months ago.

A dispirited Coco Gauff was forced to digest a seventh straight loss to Iga Swiatek as the defending champion progressed to another French Open semi-final.

The pair had met in the final 12 months ago, with Gauff winning just four games, and the American had not won a set in their six previous clashes.

The statistic remains and, although Gauff had some success with a new game plan and pushed the world number one in a 6-4 6-2 defeat, that was of little consolation.

“Obviously you lose to someone seven times, you feel crappy,” said Gauff, who struggled to hold back tears.

“It’s not fun at all but also, every time I play her, I’m not thinking about the previous record. If I go in believing that I lost the match before it already happens then I’m never going to win.

“But obviously when it’s over, yeah, it does suck.”

Gauff came out with different tactics to last year’s final, testing Swiatek with high, slower balls to her backhand and trying not to allow the top seed to get into a rhythm.

Gauff’s big opportunity came in the third game of the second set when she created three break points – the third after drilling a point-blank backhand at Swiatek at the net, sending the Pole tumbling to the clay as she tried to avoid it.

Gauff swiftly apologised, but it was Swiatek who had the last laugh as the American fired shots long on each of her opportunities.

“I think a lot of the points I lost were off really small details,” said the teenager. “The game in the third set I had an opportunity to go up 40-0 and then also I was up 40-15 on her serve and missed two returns. That’s on my end.”

Gauff was unrepentant about hitting Swiatek, saying: “I didn’t try to hit her. I was just trying to hit the ball hard in the middle of the court, and it happened to hit her.

“I apologised after but I think she knows that’s part of the game. If you hit a bad ball and you decide to run to the net, there’s always a risk that you get hit.”

The Pole did not react at the time, and said later: “I don’t really know if that was her only option or not but I know Coco is a nice person and she wouldn’t mean it. Nothing personal. It happens.”

Swiatek extended her record at Roland Garros to 26-2 as she chases a third title in four years and she has only lost 15 games in five matches so far.

While she is a clear favourite to lift the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen again, Swiatek does not want to take an all-or-nothing approach.

“It’s never like that, honestly, especially at a grand slam,” she said. “I’m pretty happy to be in the semi-final again at Roland Garros. It’s a great achievement no matter how the tournament is going to finish.

“Especially coming into the tournament as a defending champion, it puts a lot of pressure on you. I’m really happy I can show consistency and just play good here every year.”

In the last four, Swiatek will face a player who has taken a much more scenic route in 14th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, who defeated Ons Jabeur to become the first Brazilian woman to reach the French Open semi-finals in the open era.

After battling for nearly four hours to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo in the fourth round, she found herself with work to do after losing the opening set to seventh seed Jabeur but fought back impressively to win 3-6 7-6 (5) 6-1.

Haddad Maia has spent nearly 13 hours on court in reaching the last four, more than twice as long as Swiatek, who she beat in their only previous meeting in Toronto last summer.

The 27-year-old is a late bloomer having struggled with injuries and then served a 10-month doping ban – she successfully argued she had inadvertently taken a banned substance in a contaminated supplement – and this is her first time beyond the second round of a slam.

Haddad Maia said: “I think a tennis match is like a marathon. It’s not a 100 metres race. I think one of my qualities is that I wait and I’m very patient and I never give up.”

It was a disappointing loss for seventh seed Jabeur, who seemed in control of the match until the second-set tie-break.

The Tunisian managed to be happy for her opponent, though, saying: “She’s a beast and I wish her all the best. I feel like my story and her story are a little bit similar. I’m very happy for her and for Brazil, and hopefully she can do much more for her country.”

Jabeur is now targeting a first slam title at Wimbledon having lost in the final last summer.

“I’m hoping to go and get the title really in Wimbledon,” she said. “I’m dreaming about it. It’s something that I always wanted.”

Carlos Alcaraz is relishing the chance to take on Novak Djokovic for a place in the French Open final, according to his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero.

The hotly-anticipated clash will take place at Roland Garros on Friday after both moved through to the last four without dropping a set.

It is a fascinating battle of the generations, with 36-year-old Djokovic chasing a record-breaking 23rd grand slam title and Alcaraz, 16 years his junior, a second.

Ferrero knows what it takes to win on the Parisian clay having lifted the title in 2003 and he feels his man is ready to topple Djokovic.

“I think both players are maybe the best in the world right now,” said the Spaniard.

“Novak has the experience to play these kind of matches more than Carlos, of course, but, at the same time, Carlos really wants to play that match. He was really looking forward to that match since the beginning.

“Of course, he had to play match by match and we were very patient about it. But I think he is ready.

“He practised for these kind of matches. He practises for these kind of moments to be there and try to make history step by step.

“He wants to do it but of course we really know that Novak is going to give absolutely his best. I think he is going to fight until the last ball and he is going to prepare for the match as well as we can do.

“So we expect a really tough and close match. Carlos believes a lot in himself and he believes that he can beat Novak.”

That belief has been evident since the moment Alcaraz burst onto the global stage.

He swatted aside Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarter-finals on Tuesday evening with a display of all-court brilliance.

He can take confidence, meanwhile, from having beaten Djokovic in their only previous match, on clay in Madrid last spring, when he also defeated Rafael Nadal.

“He dreams very big about what he can do, so I think it’s one of the most important things that he believes in himself and that he believes that he can go to the court and win against everybody,” said Ferrero.

The pair have worked together since September 2018 and it has proved the dream partnership so far, with Ferrero helping the 20-year-old to hone his incredible natural talents.

“I’m impressed obviously about his level, but I’m with him now almost five years, so I know the level he’s able to play,” said the former world number one.

“So in that way, I’m not impressed at all because I know that he can play like this. The most impressive thing for me is that he is showing his best level against the best. That’s the most important thing.”

Iga Swiatek maintained her unbeaten record against Coco Gauff in their French Open rematch to move through to the semi-finals.

The pair had met in the final 12 months ago, with Gauff winning just four games, and the American had not won a set in their six previous clashes.

The statistic remains, although Gauff at least pushed the world number one in a 6-4 6-2 defeat, and will feel she might have done better.

The 19-year-old was unable to take the few chances she had to gain the ascendancy, particularly in the second set, and Swiatek made her pay.

The top seed has lost only 15 games in five matches, and she said: “I haven’t spent much time on court so I’m happy that today was a tighter match.”

Gauff came out with different tactics to last year’s final, testing Swiatek with high, slower balls to her backhand and trying not to allow the top seed to get into a rhythm.

It worked well to a point, with Gauff quickly retrieving an early break, but Swiatek stepped up her level to clinch the set with a brilliant returning game.

Gauff’s big opportunity came in the third game of the second set when she created three break points – the third after drilling a point-blank backhand at Swiatek at the net, sending the Pole tumbling to the clay as she tried to avoid it.

Gauff swiftly apologised, but it was Swiatek who had the last laugh as the American fired shots long on each of her opportunities.

And that would prove to be the last opening, with the two-time champion winning four games in a row to book her spot in the last four once again.

There Swiatek will face Beatriz Haddad Maia, who came from a set down to defeat Ons Jabeur and become the first Brazilian woman to reach the French Open semi-finals in the open era.

After battling for nearly four hours to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo in the fourth round, the 14th seed again found herself with work to do after losing the opening set to seventh seed Jabeur.

A very tight second went to a tie-break, which Haddad Maia took, and the Brazilian ran away with the decider to win 3-6 7-6 (5) 6-1.

Haddad Maia, 27, looked utterly stunned at the moment of victory, having never previously gone beyond the fourth round at a slam.

Her results away from the majors have been very impressive, though, and she will hope to follow in the footsteps of Brazilian grand slam champions Gustavo Kuerten and Maria Bueno.

Beatriz Haddad Maia came from a set down to defeat Ons Jabeur and become the first Brazilian woman to reach the French Open semi-finals in the open era.

After battling for nearly four hours to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo in the fourth round, the 14th seed again found herself with work to do after losing the opening set to seventh seed Jabeur.

A very tight second went to a tie-break, which Haddad Maia took, and the Brazilian ran away with the decider to win 3-6 7-6 (5) 6-1.

Haddad Maia, 27, looked utterly stunned at the moment of victory, having never previously gone beyond the fourth round at a slam.

Her results away from the majors have been very impressive, though, and she will hope to follow in the footsteps of Brazilian grand slam champions Gustavo Kuerten and Maria Bueno.

Jodie Burrage has the British number one ranking and a top-100 place in her sights as she looks to write a positive narrative this grass-court season.

Bone stress in her arm forced the 24-year-old to miss her chance to qualify last month for the French Open, where no British women were in the main draw for the first time since 2008.

It was particularly frustrating for Burrage because she had just reached her career-high ranking of 106 after winning a second-tier tournament in France and was only a win or two away from overtaking Emma Raducanu to become the country’s leading woman.

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“Obviously missing the French was a really tough call for me,” Burrage told the PA news agency. “I’m not good with missing tournaments anyway but it was kind of a conversation of, ‘you either play French and then miss grass or you miss the French and then play grass’.

“There’s quite a few things that I missed out on and could-have-beens but that’s just what tennis is, ups and downs. Hopefully I’ll get there at some point, and I believe that I can get there, I’ll just have to wait a little bit longer.”

Burrage and the rest of the leading British women are beginning their grass-court campaigns this week at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy, and there is a good chance that by the end of the week one of them will have passed Raducanu.

Burrage and Katie Boulter are best placed but Harriet Dart and Katie Swan are also in contention, with the quartet all looking to push on into the top 100.

Burrage is optimistic the domestic picture will look healthier come the end of Wimbledon, saying of the French Open wipe-out: “It is a bit of a timing thing. There are obviously quite a few of us that are 110-140 so I’m sure in the grass-court season some of those girls are going to push through.

“It is obviously disappointing from a British outlook but I can’t really focus on the whole of British tennis. I’m at my career-high ranking and have had some really good wins and a really good season.”

Burrage admits she follows the ranking permutations – “I just want to know where I could be if I get wins, it motivates me” – but she is thinking wider than simply British number one.

“It’s definitely a big goal to be British number one,” she said. “Obviously rankings and stuff is done throughout the world so I guess I kind of focus more on your actual ranking.

“I would love to be able to say I got to British number one but, one, I’m not there yet, two, it could not happen, so overall I’m just looking at boosting my ranking up to get me in grand slam main draws and that’s my real focus.”

Another major target is to force her way into Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup team for their play-off against Sweden in November.

Burrage was upset to miss out on selection for last year’s finals and then the qualifier against France in April, when she was the highest-ranked player available.

“It’s something that I would really love to do, to play a match for Great Britain,” she said. “I was disappointed not to be in the team but I can’t really do much about that now. My job now is to make sure I’m in the squad for next time. Hopefully I can do it because it’s one of my biggest goals.”

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Burrage talked things through with captain Anne Keothavong, and added: “If I take care of things week in, week out then I kind of take the question out of her hands a little bit so that’s what I’m trying to do.

“I spoke to Anne at length about it all. She’s got good comms. Hopefully for next time I can make it an easier decision for her.”

Burrage used the opportunities given to her on grass last year to push up the rankings, reaching the semi-finals in Surbiton and the final in Ilkley before beating then world number four Paula Badosa in Eastbourne.

She suffered a second first-round loss at Wimbledon, though, and bettering that is the first aim.

“I’m just looking forward to playing,” she said. “I’m still yet to win a match there so that’s my first goal, but I can’t wait. The ultimate goal is Wimbledon but we’ve still got five weeks before that so there’s a lot of work to be done first.”

Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will face each other in a blockbuster French Open semi-final on Friday.

Djokovic had to battle from a set down to defeat Russian Karen Khachanov while Alcaraz produced a show under the lights in a 6-2 6-1 7-6 (5) victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Aryna Sabalenka continued her unbeaten grand slam run by beating Elina Svitolina 6-4 6-4 to set up a last-four clash with Karolina Muchova.

Picture of the dayTweet of the dayQuote of the dayShot of the dayStat of the dayInsulin row

Alexander Zverev revealed last year that he was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of three. The German is unhappy that he has not been allowed to inject himself with insulin on court in Paris, telling German reporters: “They said it looks weird when I do this on court. But this is not a clever take because, if I don’t do it, my life will be in danger.”

Fallen seeds

Men: Karen Khachanov (11)

Women: None

Who’s up next?

Defending champion Iga Swiatek takes on Coco Gauff in a repeat of last year’s final as the quarter-finals continue in Paris.

The winner of the clash will take on either seventh seed Ons Jabeur or Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia in the last four.

In the men’s draw, there is also a rematch, with Casper Ruud and Holger Rune doing battle again after their fiery encounter 12 months ago, while Alexander Zverev meets surprise package Tomas Etcheverry.

Carlos Alcaraz demolished Stefanos Tsitsipas to set up a mouth-watering French Open semi-final against Novak Djokovic on Friday.

The prospective clash was immediately highlighted when the draw was made 12 days ago and had appeared inevitable as both men progressed through the rounds.

Both have dropped only one set but, while Djokovic had to fight back from a set down to beat Karen Khachanov on Tuesday, Alcaraz swatted aside fifth seed Tsitsipas 6-2 6-1 7-6 (5) in the night session.

The world number one said: “Believing in myself all the time, I’d say that’s the most important thing. I always feel I’m going to play this kind of matches at this level.

“I lost my focus a little bit at the end of the third set, I had a couple of match points. He started to play I would say better. I was in trouble but I’m really happy to overcome that problem, still playing a great level, believing that I was going to win the third set.”

Alcaraz and Djokovic have played only once before, with the Spaniard winning in Madrid last year, and he said: “This match everyone wants to watch. I would say it’s going to be a really good match to play and to watch. I really wanted to play this match. If you want to be the best you have to beat the best.”

On paper this appeared the toughest test for Alcaraz so far but he had won all four previous meetings against Tsitsipas, including in Barcelona in April, and was in total control from the start.

He was better in every aspect and Tsitsipas, who had won all six of his previous slam quarter-finals, simply had no answer to Alcaraz’s all-round wizardry, with winners flying past him and drop shots catching him out time and again.

The Greek did not play badly in the opening set but still had his serve broken twice and he appeared to grow increasingly demoralised in the second, where he won only 13 points.

The crowd were torn between admiring the flamboyant brilliance of Alcaraz and wanting a contest, and they responded to Tsitsipas’ call for encouragement when he finally won a game at 0-3 in the third set.

Alcaraz threatened to be held up more by a Mexican wave than his opponent but Tsitsipas did at least provide a late challenge, saving two match points at 2-5 and then breaking the 20-year-old for the first time when he served for victory.

A third match point came and went as Tsitsipas forced a tie-break, where he saved a fourth and fifth, but on his sixth chance Alcaraz converted.

Amateur tennis will return to Jamaica with the start of the inaugural Innovative Invitational Amateur Tennis Classic at the Liguanea Club in Kingston, Jamaica.

The tournament, organized by Llockett McGregor, will take place from June 12-17 feature over 90 players in the following categories: Men’s Open, Men’s Class 2 & 3 and Ladies B.

“I am expecting a very competitive and exciting tournament,” McGregor said at the launch of the Classic on Tuesday. I want to say thank you to all the sponsors who have come on board including the National Commercial Bank, Sandals and Altamont Court to name a few. We’re still working on a few more,” he added.

McGregor, when asked about the motivation behind staging the tournament, said keeping amateurs interested in the sport is a priority.

“This is an amateur tournament. Amateur, in my way of putting it, is the machinery behind the sport. They are the ones who drive the sport behind the professionals and juniors. We have to keep them interested by way of putting on tournaments for them,” McGregor said.

“In addition to that, I am the pro at the Liguanea Club which is a private members club with over 600 members. We have one of the biggest clubs in Jamaica with over eight Tennis courts and we feel it is our duty to give back to the sport of Tennis by putting on these tournaments, not only for our members but for the Tennis population at large.”

Top technology retailer, Innovative Systems Limited, have signed on as main sponsors for the first three years.

“This is the start of a blossoming relationship between Innovative Systems and the Tennis fraternity,” said Garth Walker, Executive Chairman of Innovative Systems Limited.

“This Amateur Classic will form an additional event of the annual Tennis calendar for the next three years. The Innovative Systems team is excited about this tournament, as it provides an avenue for us to aid the development of the sport. Additionally, it gives us an opportunity to foster the growth of the talented athletes who will be showcasing their expertise at this tournament,” Walker added.

The tournament draw will be held on Thursday before action gets underway with first round matches beginning at 5:00pm on Monday.

Novak Djokovic lost his first set of the French Open but battled back to defeat Karen Khachanov and move through to the semi-finals.

The third seed looked like he could be in trouble when he was pushed to a second-set tie-break after dropping the opener, but he won seven straight points and pulled away to win 4-6 7-6 (0) 6-2 6-4.

Djokovic said: “He was the better player for most of the first two sets. I was struggling to find my rhythm. I came into the match a bit sluggish, but I played a perfect tie-break and then played a couple of levels higher.

“It’s a big fight, it’s something that you expect, quarter-finals of a grand slam. You’re not going to have your victories handed over to you. I’m happy to overcome this big challenge.”

Djokovic struggled to deal with the power game of Russian Khachanov in the opening set and made some unexpected errors as he dropped serve in the fifth game.

Khachanov, who made the semi-finals at both the US Open and Australian Open, had another chance to break in the ninth game and, although Djokovic managed to hold this time, his opponent comfortably served out the set.

The momentum slowly began to switch in the second set as Djokovic, who was engaging in repeated dialogue with his support camp, began to apply some pressure to the Khachanov serve.

He did not manage to break but, not for the first time this fortnight, played a flawless tie-break and then benefited from a lucky netcord to win a long opening game of the third set on the Khachanov serve.

The only blip after that came with a loose game that saw him lose his break advantage at 4-3 in the fourth set, but Djokovic regained it straight away and served out the victory.

The Serbian is through to his 45th slam semi-final, one behind Roger Federer and seven adrift of Chris Evert’s all-time record, and now only two victories away from a record 23rd slam title.

British teenager Isabelle Lacy claimed the biggest win of her fledgling career by knocking out third seed Madison Brengle at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy.

The 16-year-old came through qualifying and overcame a rankings gap of more than 750 places to see off American Brengle 7-6 (2) 5-7 6-1.

Brengle has been as high as 35 in the world and, although aged 33 she is now down at 95, this was a hugely impressive performance from Lacy, who already has a wild card into Wimbledon qualifying courtesy of winning the British Under-18 title.

A few more performances like this one may just see that upgraded to a full wild card.

Dan Evans took a wild card into the men’s event after his first-round loss at the French Open and he joined Andy Murray in round two with a 6-4 6-4 victory over Australian James McCabe.

Katie Boulter and Katie Swan were both convincing winners on the women’s side – Boulter beating Olivia Gadecki of Australia 6-2 6-1 while Swan saw off Canada’s Carol Zhao 6-2 6-0.

Eden Silva and Sonay Kartal also reached round two but Heather Watson was edged out 2-6 7-6 (3) 7-6 (6) by Australian Maddison Inglis and there were losses for Mark Whitehouse, Billy Harris, Dan Cox and Harry Wendelken on the men’s side.

Aryna Sabalenka came out against Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko after returning to the French Open press room and facing another barrage of off-court questions.

The Australian Open champion refused to speak to the general tennis press after her third and fourth-round matches following tense exchanges with a Ukrainian journalist.

She changed that stance after beating Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina 6-4 6-4 in the quarter-finals amid more boos from the Roland Garros crowd and immediately was pressed further on her political stance.

Sabalenka has previously been pictured with Lukashenko and, asked if she still supported him, the 25-year-old said: “It’s a tough question. I don’t support war, meaning I don’t support Lukashenko right now.”

Sabalenka said she had struggled to sleep after the incidents in the previous press conferences, which she claimed left her feeling unsafe, but did not regret her decision to step away from the press room.

“I always really respect press conferences,” she said. “I’m always open in my answers. I really felt bad not coming here. I couldn’t sleep. Like all those bad feelings were in my head.

“I don’t regret the decisions. I felt really disrespected, and I felt really bad. I mean, grand slam, it’s enough pressure to handle, and I just tried to focus on myself, on my game.

“I’m always open. You can ask whatever you want. You will get all the information. But, in the last press conference, I felt like my press conference became a political TV show, and I’m not an expert in politics. I’m just a tennis player.”

Sabalenka also came under scrutiny for her conduct at the end of the match against Svitolina.

Ukrainian players have been resolute in their stance of not shaking hands with Russian and Belarusian opponents but Sabalenka stood at the net apparently waiting for the gesture she must have known would not come.

Svitolina, who had given a thumbs up to previous Russian opponents Anna Blinkova and Daria Kasatkina, walked straight past her and was loudly booed, with more jeers accompanying her as she walked off court.

Svitolina was distinctly unimpressed, saying: “I don’t know what she was waiting (for), because my statements were clear enough about the handshake.

“My initial reaction was like, ‘What are you doing?’ I made multiple statements that I’m not shaking hands, and she played obviously Marta (Kostyuk) as well the first round. So it’s quite simple.”

Asked if she felt Sabalenka had inflamed the situation, Svitolina said: “Yeah, I think so, unfortunately.”

The Belarusian insisted it had not been deliberate, though, saying: “It just was an instinct like I always do after all my matches.”

On the reaction, Sabalenka added: “I think she didn’t deserve all this boos. I’m giving such a big respect to her, what she’s doing after giving birth. It’s impressive and I’m really impressed by what she’s doing.”

In her first grand slam since the birth of daughter Skai last October, Svitolina has enjoyed one of her best grand slams.

A handful of Ukraine flags were evident among a sparse crowd as the match began and Svitolina traded game for game until Sabalenka forced a first break point at 4-4 and crunched away a return off a weak second serve.

Svitolina made a fast start to the second set, moving 2-0 ahead, but could not convert a game point in the next game and Sabalenka began to really make her extra power count, moving into a 4-2 lead.

With the patrons now having finished their lunch and fully engaged, they tried to will Svitolina – who was watched by husband Gael Monfils – into a comeback, but Sabalenka held her nerve.

Despite the defeat, it has been a brilliant fortnight for Svitolina, who will return to the top 100 next week.

“This year was difficult and different on the court, off the court, with you guys here, with your difficult questions, and overcoming difficulties, as well,” she said.

“Even though I’m sitting here dealing with it today, I feel like I won in so many ways.”

Sabalenka is not the only player to have skipped press conferences this tournament, and Svitolina added: “Definitely, I think it should be equal for everyone.

“I faced difficulty also with the question about Novak (Djokovic), about his statement about Kosovo. So I’m not escaping. I have my strong position and I’m vocal about that. I’m not going to try to (make people like me) by betraying my strong belief and the strongest position for my country.”

In the last four, Sabalenka will meet unseeded Karolina Muchova, who earlier defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5 6-2 to reach her second grand slam semi-final.

Muchova, 26, suffered an abdominal injury during her run to the semis at the Australian Open that kept her out for seven months and she was ranked outside the top 200 as recently as September.

With her run here, Muchova is set to return to the top 20, and she said: “It’s been an incredible two weeks and I’m just glad I’m still in the competition.”

Pavlyuchenkova has also found form here after knee surgery kept her out for most of last season but the 2021 runner-up is now set to miss the grass-court season because her ranking was not high enough to get her into Wimbledon.

Elina Svitolina was booed again by the French Open crowd after her memorable Paris run was ended by Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals.

In her first grand slam since the birth of daughter Skai last October, the Ukrainian has enjoyed one of her best grand slams but Australian Open champion Sabalenka was too strong in a 6-4 6-4 victory.

Having hit away the winning forehand, Belarusian Sabalenka stood at the net waiting for a handshake she must have known would not come, and there were loud boos as Svitolina walked straight past her without acknowledging her.

The 28-year-old had received loud support during the match but she left Philippe Chatrier to a mixture of jeers and cheers.

Svitolina had beaten two consecutive Russian opponents, both times offering a thumbs up at the end, but this was probably the highest-profile sporting clash between competitors from opposing sides of the war since it began.

Svitolina has been more measured in her criticism of Russian and Belarusian players than compatriots like Marta Kostyuk, who Sabalenka beat in the first round.

The Belarusian again declined to speak to the press ahead of the contest following tense exchanges with a Ukrainian journalist but said before the Kostyuk match that the surrounding circumstances had added to her nerves.

She need not have worried about the reaction walking out on to Philippe Chatrier as, although a few Ukraine flags were evident, the crowd was sparse and both players received warm welcomes.

The pair matched each other game for game until Sabalenka forced a first break point at 4-4 and crunched away a return off a weak second serve.

Svitolina made a fast start to the second set, moving 2-0 ahead, but could not convert a game point in the next game and Sabalenka began to really make her extra power count, moving into a 4-2 lead.

With the patrons now having finished their lunch and fully engaged, they tried to will Svitolina – who was watched by husband Gael Monfils – into a comeback, but Sabalenka held her nerve.

In the last four Sabalenka will meet unseeded Karolina Muchova, who earlier defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach her second grand slam semi-final.

The Czech, who also made the last four at the Australian Open in 2021, matched her best slam result with a 7-5 6-2 victory on Philippe Chatrier.

Muchova, 26, suffered an abdominal injury during her Australian run that kept her out for seven months and she was ranked outside the top 200 as recently as September.

With her run here, Muchova is set to return to the top 20, and she said: “I don’t know what to say. It’s been an incredible two weeks and I’m just glad I’m still in the competition.”

Pavlyuchenkova has also found form here after knee surgery kept her out for most of last season but the 2021 runner-up is now set to miss the grass-court season because her ranking was not high enough to get her into Wimbledon.

Karolina Muchova defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach her second grand slam semi-final at the French Open.

The Czech, who also made the last four at the Australian Open in 2021, matched her best slam result with a 7-5 6-2 victory on Philippe Chatrier.

Muchova, 26, suffered an abdominal injury during her Australian run that kept her out for seven months and she was ranked outside the top 200 as recently as September.

With her run here, Muchova is set to return to the top 20, and she said: “I don’t know what to say. It’s been an incredible two weeks and I’m just glad i’m still in the competition.”

The Czech was never behind in the match but was twice pegged back in the opening set, with Pavlyuchenkova breaking when she served for it at 5-4.

However, Muchova broke again, took her second chance and did not look back.