Federer pulls out of French Open, Bopanna gets a walkover

Two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka crashed out of the tournament.

Roger Federer announced his withdrawal from the ongoing French Open in order to protect his knee from injury. The 39-year-old has had two knee surgeries and over a year of rehabilitation. Federer has always cited Wimbledon as his main goal of the season as he goes in search of his 21st Grand Slam title.

Last night, Federer came out on top in a gruelling three hours and 35 minutes matchup versus Dominik Koepfer of Germany. FedEx eventually won 7-6, 6-7, 7-6, 7-5 in an energy-sapping encounter. Federer will now hope to recuperate with the Wimbledon and Tokyo Olympics on his mind. Owing to this, Matteo Berrettini of Italy will go straight into the French Open quarterfinal.

On the other hand, India's Rohan Bopanna received a walkover in his men's doubles third-round match. Bopanna and his Croatian partner Franko Skugor were slated to face Dutchman Matwe Middelkoop and Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador. However, their opponents gifted them a walkover. This means Bopanna and Skugor are through to the French Open quarter-finals, where they will face Spanish duo Pedro Martinez and Pablo Andujar.

Unseeded Martinez and Andujar knocked out 14th seed Belgians Joran Vliegen and Sander Gille. The Spaniards secured a straight-sets 6-4, 7-6 victory to set up a quarter-final date with Bopanna and Skugor.

Tsitsipas, Medvedev rolls on

Stefanos Tsitsipas powered his way past Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-2, 7-5. The Greek is looking to end his country's long wait for a first-ever Grand Slam champion and looks like a real deal now. Tsitsipas' perfect blend of touch, power, cool and athleticism was too hot to handle for the Spaniard. The 22-year-old has reached the semi-finals at the last two majors and has won a tour-leading 37 matches this season, including 20 on clay.

On the other hand, World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev also eased through to the French Open quarterfinals. He comfortably beat Cristian Garin of Chile 6-2, 6-1, 7-5. Medvedev had a surprisingly poor record on clay until this year. In fact, he hadn't managed to win a single match in Roland Garros before the start of the tournament. However, he has certainly worked on his flaws and things have looked better this term. The Russian will face a tough matchup in the quarter versus a solid-looking Tsitsipas.

Azarenka knocked out

Former World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka faced elimination in the last 16 at the hands of Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, going down 7-5, 3-6, 2-6. Azarenka dropped serve three times in an end-to-end second set, while Pavlyuchenkova took greater risks in the decider. The Russian was stubborn throughout the contest. Whereas, Azarenka, the 2012 and 2013 Australian Open champion buried a backhand into the net on match point, giving Pavlyuchenkova a crucial break.

This will be Pavlyuchenkova's first French Open quarter-finals since 2011. She hasn't progressed beyond this stage in any of her six Grand Slam attempts previously. Next up for the Russian will be Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan. Rybakina caused a major upset in the last 16 as she defeated Serena Williams 6-3, 7-5 to progress into the next round of the tournament.

Badosa, Zidansek continue dream run

Elsewhere, Paula Badosa continued her fine run by reaching her first-ever Grand Slam quarter-final. Badosa's aggressive baseline tennis helped her outclass Czech 20th seed Marketa Vondrousova. The 2019 Roland Garros runner-up's fatigue was in stark contrast to the energy of Badosa. Vondrousova looked to finish points quickly but Badosa thrived on longer rallies, which ultimately proved to be the deciding factor. After her 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 win on the day, Badosa will be full of confidence ahead of a Slovenian challenge in the next round.

Badosa's opponent will be Slovenia's Tamara Zidansek. On Sunday, she created history by becoming the first-ever Slovenian woman to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final. She got the better off Romania's Sorana Cirstea 7-6, 6-1. The 23-year-old Zidansek had never been beyond the second round at a Grand Slam before this year’s tournament in Paris but it was the 2009 Roland Garros quarter-finalist Cirstea who crumbled under pressure.

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