Paolini’s Winning Streak Continues
Jasmine Paolini is on an impressive winning streak. The No. 4 seed from Italy triumphed over Ukrainian lucky loser Yuliia Starodubtseva with a score of 6-4, 6-1 on Court Philippe Chatrier, advancing into the second week of Roland Garros.
On a warm Parisian day, Paolini, last year’s French Open runner-up, took just 1 hour and 9 minutes to defeat the 81st-ranked Starodubtseva. This victory marks her entry into the Round of 16 for five of her last six Grand Slam appearances.
Paolini has achieved nine consecutive match wins, following a significant victory in Rome where she became the first Italian woman to win the Internazionali BNL d’Italia singles title in four decades.
Upcoming Challenge: Elina Svitolina
In the next round, Paolini will face fellow Ukrainian and No. 13 seed Elina Svitolina. Svitolina won a hard-fought match against 83rd-ranked Bernarda Pera from the U.S., narrowly winning 7-6(4), 7-6(5) after 2 hours and 13 minutes.
This will be the second time Paolini and Svitolina meet in a Grand Slam, with Svitolina winning their previous encounter in the third round of the 2025 Australian Open.
Starodubtseva’s Journey
Starodubtseva, a former college athlete from Old Dominion University, impressed during Grand Slam qualifiers, making history in 2024 by being the first woman to qualify for all four Grand Slam main draws in a single year. As the No. 1 seed in this year’s qualifying rounds, she narrowly missed out to teenage clay specialist Sara Bejlek but made the most of her second chance as a lucky loser, reaching the third round at Roland Garros.
Match Recap
Despite her efforts, Starodubtseva couldn’t overcome Paolini, extending her record to 0-4 against Top 10 players. Paolini’s performance makes her the first Italian woman to achieve back-to-back Round of 16 appearances at Roland Garros since Sara Errani between 2012 and 2015.
The initial games of the match saw both players struggle to hold serve; however, Paolini soon found her rhythm. At 5-4, she secured the first set with a thrilling rally and a decisive drop shot. The second set was more straightforward for Paolini, who wrapped up the match after stabilizing her play following a minor stumble.
“The first few games were tough,” Paolini remarked post-match. “I had to adjust a bit to the conditions, but then I felt better on the court. I’m happy to be in the fourth round here at Roland Garros.”
