Flavio Cobolli (No. 14, Italy) has set a new career-best result at a major tournament, advancing to his first Grand Slam singles semifinal by defeating Felix Auger-Aliassime (No. 6, Canada) in the quarterfinals of the 2026 French Open.
Cobolli came from behind to beat Auger-Aliassime 3-1 (4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4) in three hours and 24 minutes at Stade Roland Garros in Paris on Tuesday. With his first major semifinal berth secured, Cobolli will face Matteo Arnaldi (No. 104, Italy) for a place in the final.
After dropping the first set and being broken early in the second, Cobolli quickly regained his rhythm. He won four consecutive games to level the match, then broke serve once each in the third and fourth sets to reach the semifinals.
"In the first set, the wind was so strong it was hard to play. I told myself this was the biggest opportunity of my tennis life, so I had to fight with everything I had. I'm really happy to have won," Cobolli said after the match. "I've had the best week of my life, but it's still not enough," he added, expressing his determination to capture the title.
With Auger-Aliassime's exit, Alexander Zverev (No. 3, Germany) is the only top-10 player remaining in the men's singles draw. Title favorites including Jannik Sinner (No. 1, Serbia) and Novak Djokovic (No. 4, Serbia) were eliminated early, while defending champion Carlos Alcaraz (No. 2, Spain) withdrew due to injury. Zverev will face Jakub Mensik (No. 26, Czech Republic) in the semifinals.
In the women's singles, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) was eliminated in the quarterfinals, falling to Diana Shnaider (No. 23, Russia) 1-2 (6-3, 5-7, 0-6) in a comeback defeat. Sabalenka, a two-time champion at both the Australian Open (2023, 2024) and the US Open (2024, 2025), once again fell short in her bid for a first French Open crown. Maja Chwalinska (No. 114, Poland), who came through qualifying to reach the semifinals, will meet Shnaider for a place in the final.
