Iga is the first name and it might denote an attitude as the defending champion and top seed blitzed her fellow 23-year-old Anastasia Potopova to reach the last eight. Next up for Swiatek? Marketa Vondrousova from the Czech Republic.
Payback?
Iga Swiatek's 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Anastasia Potopova was, at 40 minutes, the shortest match of her career. It had nothing to do with old times, said the 23-year-old Pole. The Russian, also 23, had the beating of her during their junior days, Swiatek recalled: "I lost some heart-breaking matches for me like the semi-final of the Orange Bowl when I had a match point and I lost here in the juniors when I had a pretty good tournament." The intervening years have been kinder to Swiatek who boasts four Grand Slam tournament crowns among the 21 trophies in her cabinet while Potopova has two singles and three doubles titles. "Honestly, there's no point thinking about those days," declared Swiatek. "But I had just a thought like that. It lasted two seconds and then I was focusing on my work because that's the best thing I can do." What would have been the score had she not been so distracted?
In great footsteps
Rather endearingly, Iga Swiatek is a rolling-eyed Nadal fan girl. Absolutely loves Rafa. Has even been down to the Nadal Academy in Spain to give a speech on graduation day. She is bidding to win three French Open titles on the trot just like Nadal did between 2005 and 2008 and between 2010 and 2014. Oh there was also his phase between 2017 and 2020. Should she triumph on 8 June, Swiatek will become the first woman to win three consecutive crowns since Justine Henin pulled off the feat between 2005 and 2007. And there's more. No one has won titles in Madrid, Rome and Paris in the same season since Serena Williams in 2013. Iga's looking good for greatness. How you feeling Anastasia?
Late dates
Inevitably after the 3.08am finish on Day 7 (or early Day 8 to inject some reality and avoid confusion) of the match between top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic and the 30th seed Lorenzo Musetti, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff were asked for their thoughts. Not big fans at all of the nocturnal games. "It's a complicated thing," Gauff said. "I definitely think for the health and safety of the players it would be in the sport's best interest to try to avoid those matches finishing or starting after a certain time."
Discipline
After Carlos Alcaraz had disposed of Felix Auger-Aliassime, on-court interviewer Marion Bartoli wanted to know if Alcaraz had watched the clash between Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti much, much earlier that day. Ever polite, the Spaniard said he had viewed proceedings up until the middle of the second set tiebreak before going off to bed. What a good lad.
Something of the night
Who'd have thought it? But the eighth night session featured a tie from the men's draw. That makes eight out of eight. What is this darkness that envelopes the French tennis federation? This time it was second seed Jannik Sinner against Corentin Moutet, the last remaining Frenchman in the draw. And Moutet was wonder boy for the first 45 minutes. He won the first set 6-2 and went a break up in the second. But then Sinner lived up to his name as far as the partisans on Court Philippe Chatrier were concerned and did the wrong thing by starting to be the winner. Which, of course, is a good thing if you are in with the Sinners.
