Iga Swiatek said it was "special" to have produced a longer winning run than Serena Williams and ominously vowed she can take her game to another level after triumphing at the French Open.
The world number one outclassed Coco Gauff on Court Philippe-Chatrier to win her second grand slam title, beating the teenager 6-1 6-3.
Swiatek's victory was her 35th in a row, one more than Williams' best winning streak from 2013, and the Pole is the first player to prevail in nine WTA Tour finals in a row.
Venus Williams is the only other woman since the start of 2000 to have reeled off 35 consecutive victories, while Swiatek and Serena Williams are the only women in the same period to have won six titles in the first six months of a year.
Swiatek expressed her pride at having gone one better than superstar Serena.
She said: "It may seem pretty weird, but having that 35th win and kind of doing something more than Serena did, it's something special.
"Because I always wanted to have some kind of a record. In tennis it's pretty hard after Serena's career. So that really hit me.
"Obviously winning a grand slam too, but this one was pretty special because I felt like I've done something that nobody has ever done, and maybe it's gonna be even more. This one was special."
The two-time French Open champion added: "Before the match, before the tournament, I was like, 'Okay, is it going to be even possible to beat Serena's result?'.
"I realised that I would have to be in a final. I was, like, 'Ah, we will see how the first rounds are going to go'. I didn't even think about that before. But right now I feel like the streak is more important. I kind of confirmed my good shape."
Swiatek has been on another level to her rivals this year but says there is room for improvement.
"For sure," she said. "There is always something to improve, honestly. I'm still not a complete player. Especially, I feel like even on the net I could be more solid.
"This is something that Coco actually has, because I think she started working on that much, much earlier than me. There are many things. I'm not going to tell you, because it may sound like I'm concerned about some stuff."
Top seed Dan Evans suffers shock second-round exit at Surbiton
Andy Murray is the only British man left in singles at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy after Dan Evans suffered a shock second-round loss.
Evans was the top seed after taking a late wild card following his early French Open defeat but was toppled 7-5 6-2 by 21-year-old Canadian Gabriel Diallo, ranked more than 100 places below him.
It has been a difficult season so far for 33-year-old Evans, who will hope to fare better in Nottingham next week, where he is the defending champion.
There is a lot more home representation in the women’s draw, where Katie Boulter needs one more victory to overtake Emma Raducanu as British number one.
The eighth seed battled to a 3-6 6-3 6-4 victory over countrywoman Sonay Kartal to reach the quarter-finals, where she will face Swiss Viktorija Golubic.
Boulter was joined in the last eight by Isabelle Lacy, Katie Swan and Yuriko Miyazaki.
Sixteen-year-old Lacy was given a walkover by American Sachia Vickery and will play Miyazaki, who defeated compatriot Eden Silva, while Swan was 5-3 up on Oceane Dodin when the Frenchwoman retired.
Harriet Dart was close to joining them but lost a tight tussle 6-4 6-7 (5) 6-4 to top seed and last year’s Wimbledon semi-finalist Tatjana Maria, who next plays Swan.
Shoulder injury rules Jack Draper out of Wimbledon
Jack Draper will miss Wimbledon with the shoulder injury he suffered at the French Open last week.
It is a huge blow to the 21-year-old, whose progress has been disrupted by a series of injuries.
The latest came in practice ahead of his first-round clash at Roland Garros last Monday against Tomas Etcheverry, with Draper forced to serve underarm before calling it a day after only one game of the second set.
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While hugely disappointed that his body had again let him down, Draper was optimistic the problem with his left shoulder would not disrupt his grass-court campaign too much.
However, having had a scan and seen a specialist, Draper has decided to miss the whole of the British summer season.
Draper wrote on Instagram: “It’s clear my shoulder is going to need time and rehab to get back to where it needs to be. My team and I have made the difficult decision to miss the grass court season this year.
“I guess in this sport there are so many ups and downs but this one is tough to take. The only thing for sure is that I will keep persevering.”
He is optimistic he will not need surgery and is hoping to return to the match court in mid to late July.
When he has been fit, Draper has shown he has the potential to be among the best in the world but that has not been nearly as often as he would have liked.
Last season a promising run to the third round of the US Open was ended by a leg injury and, after illness disrupted his pre-season, Draper has already missed large chunks of this year with hip and abdominal problems.
In Paris last week the Londoner said he felt “mentally destroyed”, adding: “I hate being the guy who is injured a lot.”
Draper made his Wimbledon debut in 2021, losing to Novak Djokovic, while last year he pushed Alex De Minaur to four sets in the second round.
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will meet for the first time at a grand slam in Paris on Friday but the Serbian expects a familiar feeling.
Alcaraz was still a baby the last time the French Open was played without his compatriot Rafael Nadal in the draw.
Now Spain has a new hero to cheer and Djokovic a new rival to spar with at the top of the game.
“He carries himself very well,” said the 36-year-old. “No doubt very nice guy on and off the court. Brings a lot of intensity on the court. Reminds me of someone from his country that plays with a left hand.”
Djokovic and Alcaraz met for the first – and only – time in Madrid last year, when the young Spaniard served notice that he was the present as well as the future of tennis by beating Nadal and Djokovic back to back.
Since then they have frustratingly missed each other, with Djokovic unable to play in the US Open, where Alcaraz won his first grand slam title, because of his vaccination status, while the 20-year-old was kept out of the Australian Open by injury.
Djokovic claimed his 22nd slam title in Melbourne and can set a new all-time men’s record by lifting the Coupe des Mousquetaires for a third time.
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“He deserves his success, no doubt,” said Djokovic of Alcaraz. “He’s working hard and he’s a very complete player already and only 20.
“So we played only once in Madrid last year, 7-6 in the third for him. Most of the tournaments this year we were not in the same draw but here we are.
“That’s the match that a lot of people want to see. It’s definitely the biggest challenge for me so far in the tournament. If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. He’s definitely a guy to beat here. I’m looking forward to that.”
They both reached the semi-finals dropping only one set but, Alcaraz has been the more impressive, spending three-and-a-half hours less on court than Djokovic in his five matches so far.
The Serbian, who can reclaim the world number one ranking by winning the title, looked in trouble for a while against Karen Khachanov before playing a flawless second-set tie-break.
Djokovic’s ability to lock in at the most important moments is one of his greatest strengths and the Serbian’s extraordinary precision in the placement of his shots is unmatched.
If Djokovic is the old master, Alcaraz is the young impressionist, using the clay canvas to show off his talent and exuberance.
John McEnroe declared Alcaraz the most complete 20-year-old he has ever seen earlier in the tournament, and the audacity of his shots demonstrates the supreme confidence he has in his game.
He spoke of his excitement at playing Djokovic, saying: “Since the draw came out, everyone was expecting that match, the semi-final against Novak. Myself as well. I really want to play that match.
“Since last year I really wanted to play again against Novak. We both are playing a great level. I’m going to enjoy it.
“Of course, for me, it’s amazing to make history, playing a semi-final with such a legend like Novak. So it’s going to be a great match for me.
“I would say the match we played last year doesn’t affect too much this one. We both learned a lot from that match, so it’s going to be totally different, and let’s see what happens on Friday.”
The other semi-final pits fourth seed Casper Ruud against Alexander Zverev, who has found form again on the Paris clay 12 months after seriously injuring his ankle in a last-four clash with Nadal.
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The German did not play another match until the beginning of this season but insisted there is no mental scar tissue as he looks to reach a second grand slam final.
“I think I’m at a stage now where I’m not thinking about the injury so much anymore,” he said. “I’m not thinking about what happened. I’m just happy to be back where I was last year, and I have another chance. Hopefully I can take it.”
Ruud made his first slam final here last year before losing heavily to Nadal and has shrugged off his own difficult start to the season.
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