PARIS/STARNBERG, May 31, 2026
Rafael Jodar continued his fine run of form at his Roland Garros debut on Sunday by advancing to his first Grand Slam quarterfinal after winning an all-Spanish battle against Pablo Carreno Busta. The 19-year-old rallied from two sets down to claim a hard-fought 4-6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 victory in three hours and 41 minutes.
FIRST GRAND SLAM QUARTER-FINAL INCOMING 🤩
Jodar comes back from two sets to love down to deliver the win 📮#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/jUOksjVut3
— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 31, 2026
“First of all, I want to congratulate Pablo on the match and wish him the best for the rest of the season. We sometimes train together. I’m very happy with the win. It’s difficult to change direction against his backhand because he plays so deep. I didn’t want to rush things. I knew the mental side would be important and that I had to keep my unforced errors low. From the second set onwards, things worked really well for me,” Jodar said.
Showing remarkable resilience and maturity, Jodar turned the match around after a difficult start, dominating the final three sets to continue his breakthrough run in Paris. The teenager will next play Alexander Zverev, who had no such struggles, beating Dutch lucky loser Jesper de Jong 7-6(3), 6-4, 6-1.
“In the beginning it was a bit difficult, I didn’t start off strong and he started really fast and well,” Zverev said.
“But once I found rhythm I felt comfortable on court, and that’s the main thing for me.
“I know my game is there and it’s about showing it on match courts.”
The day began with a major upset in the women’s draw, as four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek was knocked out by the in-form 15th seed Marta Kostyuk.
Kostyuk’s victory set up an all-Ukrainian quarterfinal against seventh seed Elina Svitolina, who battled past Belinda Bencic in three sets.
Meanwhile, Romania’s Sorana Cirstea continued her impressive run in the tournament. The 36-year-old booked her place in the last eight with a straight-sets victory over China’s Wang Xiyu.
