The 2026 French Open lost the last of its former champions on Sunday, as four-time winner Iga Świątek was bundled out on her 25th birthday and the men’s draw — already without an injured Carlos Alcaraz and a beaten Novak Djokovic — saw two more teenagers march into the last eight. By nightfall there were no former champions left at Roland Garros in either the men’s or the women’s draws.
Świątek’s reign ends. The defining result of the day belonged to Marta Kostyuk. The 15th-seeded Ukrainian, undefeated this season on clay, reached the quarterfinals in Paris for the first time by taking out four-time champion Iga Świątek 7-5, 6-1 — and ruining her birthday. Kostyuk had lost her three previous matches against Świątek and never even taken a set off the former world No. 1. This time she defended relentlessly and forced the errors, while Świątek showed signs of nerves, double-faulting and shanking a forehand wide as Kostyuk reeled her in. “I’m still in shock,” Kostyuk said. “To beat such an unbelievable player, who won four times here.”
A historic Ukrainian semifinal is guaranteed. Kostyuk’s reward is a meeting with her compatriot Elina Svitolina, who came through later on Court Philippe-Chatrier. The seventh seed began slowly but finished strongly to beat Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic 4-6, 6-4, 6-0. The all-Ukrainian last-eight clash carries unusual weight: it ensures there will be a Ukrainian woman in the semifinals at Roland Garros for the first time in the professional era, which began in 1968. “There’s going to be Ukraine in the semifinals, so it’s already amazing,” said Svitolina, whose country remains at war with Russia. Svitolina, still chasing a maiden Grand Slam title at 31, arrived in Paris in superb form after winning the Rome title.
The teenagers keep coming. If the women’s draw blew open, the men’s continued a youth movement that has become the story of the fortnight. Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal with a hard-fought 7-5, 7-6(8), 5-7, 6-2 win over 15th seed Casper Ruud, continuing the breakthrough run that began with his stunning third-round defeat of Djokovic. The 19-year-old was not alone. Fonseca and Spain’s Rafael Jodár each won on Sunday, becoming the second teenage duo in the past 30 years to reach the same Grand Slam quarterfinal.
Maiden quarterfinals all round. Fonseca’s next opponent will be another first-timer at this stage. Jakub Mensik defeated 11th seed Andrey Rublev 6-3, 7-6(6), 4-6, 2-6, 6-3 to also reach his maiden major quarterfinal. Jodár, meanwhile, faces a far more experienced obstacle. Former finalist Alexander Zverev overcame early nerves to beat Jesper De Jong 7-6(3), 6-4, 6-1, setting up a meeting with the young Spaniard.
Andreeva stays the course. Amid the upheaval, one of the pre-tournament contenders kept her composure. Former semifinalist Mirra Andreeva brushed aside Jil Teichmann 6-3, 6-2, with the Russian eighth seed advancing to face Romania’s Sorana Cirstea in the quarterfinals.
What comes next. The carnage leaves a wide-open path on both sides of the draw and a blockbuster Day 9 to come. Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka meets four-time major champion Naomi Osaka in Monday’s night-session headliner, while Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerúndolo — who upset a cramp-hampered Jannik Sinner earlier in the tournament — takes on Matteo Berrettini. With the favourites thinning by the day, Paris looks increasingly likely to crown a first-time Grand Slam champion before the fortnight is out.
