{"id":2220,"date":"2026-05-31T12:05:49","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T12:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=2220"},"modified":"2026-05-31T12:05:49","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T12:05:49","slug":"marta-kostyuk-stuns-iga-swiatek-on-her-birthday-to-reach-a-first-french-open-quarterfinal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=2220","title":{"rendered":"Marta Kostyuk stuns Iga Swiatek on her birthday to reach a first French Open quarterfinal"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Ukraine\u2019s Marta Kostyuk reacts after the fourth-round tennis against Poland\u2019s Iga Swiatek match at the French Open in Paris, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (AP Photo\/Christophe Ena)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

PARIS \u2014 There will be a first-time women\u2019s champion at Roland-Garros this year, and the odds are stacked in Marta Kostyuk\u2019s favor.<\/p>

Read more Eintracht Frankfurt brings back Adi H\u00fctter as coach on a 3-year deal<\/a><\/p>\n

Undefeated this season on clay, the 15th-seeded Ukrainian player reached the quarterfinals at the French Open<\/a> for the first time on Sunday by taking out four-time champion Iga Swiatek 7-5, 6-1 and ruining her birthday.<\/p>\n

None of the players still in the draw have yet lifted the trophy in Paris, following Coco Gauff\u2019s elimination<\/a> on Saturday and Swiatek\u2019s exit. It\u2019s the same in the men\u2019s draw, after the defeats of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic and with Carlos Alcaraz absent because of an injury.<\/p>\n

Kostyuk had lost her three previous matches against Swiatek and never taken a set against the former top-ranked player, who turned 25 on Sunday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m still in shock. To beat such an unbelievable player, who won four times here,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Kostyuk has been the best player of the clay-court season. She defended extremely well, chasing Swiatek\u2019s shots all over the court, and also produced some stunning groundstroke winners while her rival was also undone by her own mistakes.<\/p>\n

An intense baseline battle unfolded from the outset and Swiatek earned the first break when she overwhelmed Kostyuk after a long rally with a backhand winner. Kostyuk broke back immediately, though, only to drop her serve again and hand Swiatek a 5-4 lead.<\/p>\n

The Polish player showed signs of nerves as she double-faulted, shanked a forehand wide and then missed a volley at the net, allowing Kostyuk to level at 5-5. Swiatek hit two more double faults in the 12th game and the 15th-seeded Ukrainian player sealed the set with a backhand passing shot.<\/p>\n

Swiatek then briefly left the court. Meanwhile, Kostyuk kept herself warm by stretching and hopping beside her chair, then received some applause as she did a few dance moves to the music playing in the stadium.<\/p>\n

Following a first week marked by a suffocating heatwave, relief finally arrived in Paris on Sunday, with temperatures dropping to 21 degrees C (70 F) around midday.<\/p>

Read more Spanberger clashed with Republicans early. Now, it\u2019s Democrats.<\/a><\/p>\n

When play resumed, Swiatek broke, but yet another double fault coupled with more unforced errors brought her opponent back at 1-1. Kostyuk then won the last five games.<\/p>\n

Kostyuk had reached the fourth round at Roland Garros in 2021, losing to Swiatek.<\/p>\n

The 15th-ranked Ukrainian is in a strong run of form and extended her winning streak on clay to 16 matches. Ahead of Roland Garros, she won in Madrid \u2014 the biggest title of her career \u2014 after she claimed another clay-court title in Rouen, France.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most important thing that I\u2019ve been doing this whole time is really just trying to enjoy,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s helping. I want to keep enjoying. I try not to focus at all on winning or losing because I\u2019m not playing tennis to win, I\u2019m playing tennis because I love it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swiatek has not won a title on clay since the 2024 French Open.<\/p>\n

Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea, who is planning to retire at the end of the season, beat Chinese qualifier Wang Xiyu 6-3, 7-6 (4) to reach her second Roland Garros quarterfinal, 17 years after first making it to the last eight.<\/p>\n

The gap between Cirstea\u2019s first and second Grand Slam quarterfinal appearances in Paris is the longest at a single major by any woman in the Open Era.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no expiration date for ambition and for dreams,\u201d Cirstea said. \u201cAnd I have so much passion for this sport. I absolutely love tennis and to be able to play to still play at this level, have my family, my team, the closest people watching me.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an absolute joy. Sometimes society puts us in certain groups because of the age, but I think in life you are free to do whatever you want and I want to play. And here I am.\u201d<\/p>

Read more Why the favorite for California governor has divided his Biden-era colleagues<\/a><\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AP Sports Writer Andrew Dampf contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AP tennis: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/tennis<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Marta Kostyuk reaches the French Open quarterfinals for the first time by defeating Iga Swiatek 7-5, 6-1<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2218,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nMarta Kostyuk stuns Iga Swiatek on her birthday to reach a first French Open quarterfinal - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=2220\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Marta Kostyuk stuns Iga Swiatek on her birthday to reach a first French Open quarterfinal - 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