Zverev and Jakub Menšík advance to French Open semifinals after Roland Garros quarterfinal wins

Alexander Zverev and Jakub Menšík moved into the French Open men’s semifinals on June 2 after winning their quarterfinals in straight sets at Roland Garros in Paris. Zverev, the No. 2 seed, beat Rafael Jódar 7-6(3) 6-1 6-3 in 2 hours 25 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier. (atptour.com) Menšík, the No. 26 seed, followed with a 6-4 6-3 7-6(3) win over No. 28 João Fonseca in 2 hours 44 minutes in the night session. (atptour.com) The results ended two of the tournament’s breakout runs. Jódar, a 19-year-old Spaniard, led 5-2 in the first set before Zverev recovered to force a tiebreak and take control. (atptour.com) Fonseca, also 19, had arrived in the quarterfinals after wins over Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud, but Menšík closed out the match on his seventh match point, according to the ATP. ### How did Zverev get through Rafael Jódar after the slow start? Alexander Zverev fell behind early under the closed roof on Court Philippe-Chatrier before turning the match around from 2-5 in the opening set. (atptour.com) The ATP said the German won the tiebreak after four straight points from 3/3, then stayed firm on serve and dictated rallies with more aggressive groundstrokes. Zverev said the conditions changed his approach. “It was difficult,” he said in his on-court interview, adding that the roof altered the bounce and forced him to flatten out his shots more than usual. (atptour.com) He said Jódar “outplayed” him early and that the Spaniard became nervous when serving for the set. ### What stood out in Menšík’s win over João Fonseca? Jakub Menšík controlled much of the match from the baseline and at the net, according to the ATP’s match report. The 20-year-old Czech broke early, served powerfully and used touch volleys to disrupt Fonseca’s rhythm, particularly in the second set. (atptour.com) Menšík said both players were tense at the start. “We started a little bit nervous,” he said in his on-court interview, adding that he was pleased to recover after falling a couple of breaks behind in the third set. (atptour.com) The ATP said Menšík became the first man born in 2004 or later to reach the last four of a major tournament. It also said he is the youngest Czech man to reach the semifinals of a major. ### Why had Jódar and Fonseca drawn so much attention in Paris? (atptour.com) Rafael Jódar entered the quarterfinal with 19 tour-level clay wins this season, the ATP said, and pushed Zverev hard for a set before fading. The official Roland Garros results page listed him as the No. 27 seed in the quarterfinal draw. (atptour.com) João Fonseca came in after one of the standout runs of the tournament. The ATP said the Brazilian had rallied from two sets down to beat Novak Djokovic in the third round and then defeated two-time finalist Casper Ruud in four sets, spending 14 hours 29 minutes on court across his first four matches. (atptour.com) ### What does the semifinal lineup look like now? Roland Garros’ official results page shows Zverev and Menšík as the two men through from the June 2 quarterfinal slate. The ATP said their semifinal meeting will decide a place in the championship match. (atptour.com) The official tournament schedule lists Day 13 on June 5 as the next key date in Paris for the men’s singles draw. Roland Garros’ order-of-play pages also show the women’s quarterfinals continuing on June 3, with later semifinal rounds scheduled on June 4 and June 5. (rolandgarros.com) (atptour.com 1) (atptour.com 2)