Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina suffered a stunning second-round exit at the French Open, falling to Ukraine's Yuliia Starodubtseva in a dramatic three-set battle on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Match Recap
The second seed appeared poised for a routine victory after claiming the opening set 6-3, but her game unravelled in the sweltering Paris heat. Starodubtseva, ranked 55th in the world, seized control by winning nine of the next ten games to build a 3-0 lead in the deciding set.
Rybakina's unforced errors mounted rapidly, outpacing her winners as she struggled to find rhythm. Though she mounted a late comeback to force a tie-break, Starodubtseva held her nerve to seal the biggest win of her career with a 3-6 6-1 7-6 (10/4) triumph.
The Kazakh's final tally of 71 unforced errors told the story of a frustrating afternoon. This marks Rybakina's earliest Grand Slam exit since a second-round loss at the 2024 US Open.
Swiatek Advances
Four-time champion Iga Swiatek avoided a similar upset, easing past young Czech Sara Bejlek 6-2 6-3 to reach the third round. The Pole, who has endured a challenging season under new coach Francisco Roig, acknowledged her performance was not flawless.
"Sometimes I had moments where mistakes happened, but at the end I felt I had control over the game," Swiatek said. "In important moments I was focused and patient enough to play solid."
Swiatek will also be relieved to avoid Jelena Ostapenko, against whom she holds a 0-6 record, after the Latvian lost to Poland's Magda Linette.
Seventh seed Elina Svitolina, in fine form, had a much smoother outing following her first-round struggles, defeating Kaitlin Quevedo 6-0 6-4.
