Tales of Iga Swiatek’s demise appear to have been somewhat presumptuous. The four-time Roland Garros champion has certainly had her struggles this season, losing the aura of invincibility that had some opponents beaten before a ball was served.
2025 WTA Tour
Grand Slam Tennis
French Open
Stade Roland Garros, Paris, France (Outdoor Clay)
Selected Quarterfinals- 3rd June
Iga Swiatek (5) 2.4 vs Elina Svitolina (13) 0.3
But I always knew that the Pole would find a way in the Paris dirt. She sauntered through her first three matches (dropping just 14 games in the process). But she encountered significant headwinds in her round of 16 clash, going a set down to an in-form Elena Rybakina. But she rallied back like a true champion, clinching the match with a trademark forehand to prevail 1-6, 6-3, 7-5, reaching her 6th successive quarterfinal on the hallowed terre battue. She has now won 25 straight French Open matches, tying Monica Seles for the 2nd most wins in a row at the tournament. The manner of her victory took me back to last year’s French Open, where the Pole managed to survive a match point against Naomi Osaka in the early rounds. That Houdini act galvanized Swiatek’s entire French Open campaign and this result has the potential to do the same.
Elina Svitolina’s 2025 French Open journey has followed a remarkably similar trajectory to that of Swiatek. The counterpunching Ukrainian shone in the early stages, winning her first three matches without dropping a set. She then faced her biggest test of the tournament, going head-to-head with 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini in the round of 16. She struggled to match the aggressive Italian’s energy, going down a set and a break against the in-form Paolini. She then produced arguably the greatest comeback of this year’s tournament, harnessing all her trademark tenacity to save three match points and triumph 4-6, 7-6, 6-1. Svitolina’s comeback win improved her 2025 tour-level record to 29-8. She has been particularly devastating on clay, going 16-2 since the start of the Open de Rouen (which she went on to win). The five-time Roland Garros quarterfinalist will be looking to reach the semifinals here for the first time in her decorated career.
The Verdict: Swiatek to win in straight sets at 0.76- Swiatek leads the head-to-head 3-1, winning their lone clay-court meeting at the 2021 Italian Open. This should be an intriguing clash, with Swiatek’s all-out aggression coming up against the counterattacking chops of Svitolina. I think the Pole is going to run away with this. She tends to struggle against direct, aggressive players with significant weapons (Rybakina, Sabalenka). Svitolina is more strategic and that will play into the Pole’s wheelhouse.
