We are quickly approaching the business end of the tournament with Aryna Sabalenka and Karolina Muchova securing their semifinal spots. As always, we here at LWOT will preview and predict every match. Can anyone take out Iga Swiatek?
French Open Quarterfinals Predictions
Ons Jabeur vs Beatriz Haddad Maia
Damian Kust: Jabeur’s clay season was a bit ruined by the ankle injury in Stuttgart, after which she only played one match in Madrid/Rome and got destroyed by Paula Badosa. She’s picked herself up wonderfully for the French though and looks as dangerous as ever. It’s already the best run of Haddad Maia’s Slam career by a country mile and while she has the potential to keep going, all the long matches will take their toll at some point.
Prediction: Jabeur in 3
Andreas Pelekis: Both players had completely different fourth-round matches; Jabeur cruised past Pera 6-3 6-1, while Haddad Maia won in a nearly four-hour epic against Sorribes Tormo. The Brazilian is certainly known for her long battles, yet the big question is whether she has anything left in the tank. Jabeur infamously resorts to sloppy patterns of play during big marches, almost executing the drop shot too much. Yet, that shot may be a big weapon for Jabeur in this match, as she’ll look to tire out the Brazilian early. This match certainly won’t go four hours, but look for it to be a close one. Jabeur should be able to reach her first Roland Garros semifinal this time around.
Prediction: Jabeur in 3
Jack: Ons Jabeur has quietly gone about her business to get to the quarterfinals but she should be getting a ton of praise. She’s taken down in-form players in Lucia Bronzetti and Olga Danilovic and staved off the attacks of Bernarda Pera and Oceane Dodin using her exceptionally unique brand of clay-court tennis. Whilst Beatriz Haddad Maia will be willing to grind out every point, I don’t think she is much more of a threat than any of the Tunisian’s previous opponents. I’m expecting a masterclass from Jabeur.
Prediction: Jabeur in 2
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Iga Swiatek vs Coco Gauff
Damian: With six meetings over the past 24 months or so, we have a lot of data on how the Swiatek – Gauff rivalry looks. The American is yet to take a set and in fact, most of these were absolute beatdowns, including the Roland Garros final from 2022. Swiatek can direct so much pressure to the Gauff forehand and crushes through her defense, despite it being so effective against most other players. Nothing we’ve seen so far suggests this will go differently.
Prediction: Swiatek in 2
Andreas: Regarded a future rivalry, this matchup has only been brutally one-sided in favor of the World No. 1. As Swiatek leads the h2h 6-0, she’s been confident as ever, firing winners after winners in her first four rounds. Gauff has definitely done better than pundits predicted in Paris, improving her forehand and scrapping through wins over Andreeva and Schmiedlova. A rematch of last year’s final, there should definitely be some camaraderie and crowd support to help Gauff, and look (and hope) for the American to keep one of the sets close. The outcome though, is frankly obvious if Swiatek maintains her great form.
Prediction: Światek in 2
Jack: Fair play to Coco Gauff for making her way to the quarterfinals this year. She’s sharpened up her form to win four matches in a row for the first time since Auckland at the start of the year. Still, I’d argue none of those wins change the way in which this match-up tends to play out. Iga Swiatek could only be beaten by someone that can take time away from her on these courts; Gauff lacks the offensive weaponry to consistently take time away from the world #1; Swiatek will be given free reign to dictate the rallies for as long as necessary. Bar a bout of extreme nerves for Swiatek, I can’t see anything at this stage of Gauff’s career that could fluster the defending champion at the French Open.
Prediction: Swiatek in 2
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
