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Tennis: Poland's Chwalińska reaches French Open third round in career milestone

28.05.2026 18:30
Poland’s Maja Chwalińska posted the biggest win of her career on Thursday, defeating 23rd-seeded Elise Mertens of Belgium 6-4, 6-0 to reach the third round of the French Open for the first time.
Polish tennis player Maja Chwalińska.
Polish tennis player Maja Chwalińska.Photo: Peter Menzel, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

The 24-year-old Pole, ranked No. 114 in the world, is making her Roland Garros main-draw debut after advancing through qualifying.

The victory is expected to propel her into the top 100 of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) rankings for the first time in her career. She moved up to No. 91 in the live rankings after beating Mertens.

Chwalińska had already caused a major upset in the first round, defeating China’s Zheng Qinwen, the reigning Olympic champion, by the same 6-4, 6-0 scoreline.

Against Mertens, the left-hander again relied on her trademark consistency and deep, high-bouncing groundstrokes, repeatedly pushing the Belgian onto the defensive.

There were concerns about Chwalińska's fitness after she took the court with her left thigh heavily strapped and required a medical timeout during the opening set.

However, she dominated the second set, while Mertens also needed treatment for a calf problem.

Chwalińska committed 20 unforced errors compared with 41 by her opponent and sealed victory after 98 minutes.

It was only the third Grand Slam main-draw appearance of Chwalińska's career. Her previous best result was reaching the second round at Wimbledon in 2022. She lost in the opening round of this year's Australian Open.

Chwalińska will next face Greece’s Maria Sakkari for a place in the fourth round of the women's singles in Paris.

Meanwhile, Poland's third-seeded Iga Świątek will take on countrywoman Magda Linette in the third round on Friday.

Magdalena Fręch, the fourth Polish woman in the singles draw, was eliminated in the second round after a 5-7, 4-6 defeat to Switzerland’s Jil Teichmann on Wednesday.

On the men's side, Poland's world No. 99 Hubert Hurkacz exited the tournament on Thursday after a five-set loss to 22nd-seeded American Frances Tiafoe, who prevailed 7-6, 6-7, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 in their second-round match.

Fellow Pole Kamil Majchrzak was eliminated in the first round on Tuesday, falling 1-6, 3-6, 4-6 to Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo.

(gs)

Source: IAR, PAP