PARIS: Alexander Zverev returned to the semi-finals of the French Open on Wednesday a year after leaving Roland Garros in a wheelchair, while defending champion Iga Swiatek also maintained her quest for a third title in four years.
Zverev had suffered a season-ending ankle injury in his last-four match against eventual champion Rafa Nadal on Court Philippe Chatrier in 2022 and had surgery, but complications later meant a return to pain-free action was delayed.
His comeback has gathered pace at Roland Garros and he beat unseeded Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-4 3-6 6-3 6-4 to book his place in the last four in Paris for a third time.
Zverev will run into Casper Ruud in the semi-finals after the 2022 runner-up beat error-prone sixth seed Holger Rune 6-1 6-2 3-6 6-3 in the night session.
Swiatek was tested by sixth seed Coco Gauff in a rematch of their 2022 title clash but the world number one was too good for the American and closed out a 6-4 6-2 victory.
Seventh seed Ons Jabeur’s hopes of becoming the first African woman to win a Grand Slam singles title were left in tatters after she was beaten 3-6 7-6(5) 6-1 by Beatriz Haddad Maia in the quarter-finals.
Jabeur was bidding to reach her third Grand Slam semi-final in less than a year but Haddad Maia produced a superb display under pressure.
The world number 14 became the first Brazilian woman since Maria Bueno in 1968 to reach a major semi-final and the first female player from her country to book a last-four spot at Roland Garros in the Open Era.
