Sabalenka and Osaka seek French Open wins to create style clash / Photo: © AFP
Sabalenka and Osaka seek French Open wins to create style clash
For the women stars, whose dress sense has drawn as much attention as their playing style, the French Open fashion spotlight moves Saturday to the court named after the embodiment of tennis chic, Suzanne Lenglen.
On the men's side, 17-year-old Moise Kouame will try to prolong his white-knuckle ride through his home-town major, while the Cerundolo brothers will attempt to keep marching in step.
Naomi Osaka may be a four-time major winner, but increasingly she is tying her image to what she wears as much as how she plays. The way she enters the court in her first match at a major - a mix of model's catwalk and boxer's ring walk - has become her brand.
After a jellyfish-inspired outfit before her first match at the Australian Open, she strode out at Roland Garros with an "Eiffel Tower at night" ensemble that revealed a sparkling, gold-accented playing dress.
Osaka won, against an unhappy Laura Siegemund, and then, still aglitter, beat Donna Vekic, also in straight sets.
If she beats 17th-seeded American Iva Jokic, Osaka would advance to the fourth round at Roland Garros for the first time. It would be a playing affirmation, even if she skirts a fashion statement.
In the the last 16, the winner would face either the women's No.1 Aryna Sabalenka or Australian Daria Kasatkina.
Sabalenka dominates women's tennis but her only clay-court victories have come in Madrid. The Belarusian lost last year's Roland Garros final to Coco Gauff.
Yet much of the attention at the boiling start of Roland Garros was on her dress and her necklaces.
"The dress is super light," she said after her second-round victory. "I don't feel the dress on me. I was thinking it's going to be super hot wearing black, but it doesn't feel like black colour on me, so I feel really comfortable. And diamonds, I don't really feel the heaviness of it."
The leading women are followed onto Lenglen by Kouame, fresh from subjecting home fans to a five-set second-round rollercoaster. His erratic, youthful, energy should provide shrieking French supporters with more thrills as he takes on Chilean Alejandro Tabilo.
Gauff continues her so-far serene title defence on Philippe Chatrier - usually the most desirable address at Roland Garros. She faces Anastasia Potapova.
- 'Your brother won!' -
Organisers have taken the risk of scheduling fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime to close play on the main court.
The Canadian's first-round night match against Daniel Altmaier went to a fifth-set 'super tiebreak' and lasted four hours and 16 minutes. This time the Canadian faces American Brandon Nakashima.
While Juan Manuel Cerundolo was pulling off his shocking comeback to eliminate top seed Jannik Sinner on Thursday, his older brother Francisco was battling Hugo Gaston on Court Simonne Mathieu.
"People started saying, 'Your brother won, your brother won'. I was 3-1 up in the fourth," said the men's 25th seed. "And then I say, 'Okay, if he wins, I have to win. Please focus, focus, focus'."
This time the 27-year-old Francisco starts a little earlier. He opens play on Court 14 against American Zachary Svajda.
The younger of the Argentine brothers, Juan Manuel, 24, is second up on Court 7 against Spaniard Martin Landaluce.
They will follow the grudge match between Ukrainian Oleksandra Oliynykova and Russian 25th seed Diana Shnaider.
Ahead of the match, Oliynykova accused Shnaider of supporting perpetrators of war crimes against Ukraine.
"So is it really important who will hit harder forehand tomorrow?" asked the 25-year-old Kyiv native.
Lewis--TNT
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