Marta Kostyuk’s remarkable clay-court season shows no sign of slowing. The 15th seed defeated Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubić 6-4, 6-3 in the third round of Roland Garros on Friday to reach the fourth round, notching her 15th consecutive victory on the surface. It leaves her unbeaten on clay in 2026 and into the second week in Paris for just the second time in seven appearances here.
The Ukrainian is the first player in either singles draw to reach the last 16, and she did it with the same controlled aggression that has defined her run since the spring. Against Golubić, ranked 82nd in the world, Kostyuk compiled 35 winners and converted four of her nine break-point chances. The numbers told the story of how she does it: Golubić landed 70 per cent of her first serves to Kostyuk’s 52, but Kostyuk won 71 per cent of her first-serve points to the Swiss player’s 60 and broke four times in ten chances.
The clay run
Kostyuk arrived in Paris on the form of her life. She came in off back-to-back titles in Rouen and Madrid, the latter her first WTA 1000 trophy, and reached the French capital with more clay-swing points than any other woman in the field. She has not lost since Miami, winning 21 of her past 23 sets, and was the only woman in the field to claim multiple clay trophies in the build-up. Asked what had unlocked the surge, she pointed to a change in mindset: “I went back to little me. I always played unbelievable on clay since I was a kid.”
The wins have come the hard way at times. She needed two hours and 43 minutes and a deciding set to subdue Katie Volynets in the second round, rallying from a set down to win 6-7, 6-3, 6-3 in the Paris heat. The Friday win over Golubić was more emphatic, a straight-sets statement on a surface where Kostyuk has quietly become the player to beat.
What’s next
The reward is potentially the toughest test of all. Kostyuk will face the winner of Saturday’s all-Polish meeting between four-time champion Iga ÅšwiÄ…tek — who has won 28 of her last 29 matches at this tournament — and Magda Linette in the round of 16. ÅšwiÄ…tek, the gravitational force of this event for half a decade, would represent the clearest measure yet of how far Kostyuk’s clay revival can carry her.
For now, the 23-year-old has already matched her best Roland Garros result and extended a streak that has made her one of the genuine contenders in a women’s draw that looks more open by the day. The little girl who always loved clay is not done yet.
