French Open: ‘I’m jealous’ - Alex Corretja wowed by Elena Rybakina’s power as fourth seed looks big threat

ByBecky Hart

Updated 01/06/2024 at 14:55 GMT

Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina has plenty of power on both sides, and is renowned as one of the hardest hitters on the WTA Tour. She used all that power to make it to the fourth round of Roland-Garros with a comfortable win over Elise Mertens, with Eurosport’s Alex Corretja admitting afterwards that he was very envious of Rybakina’s game as she proves herself to be a big threat.

Elena Rybakina recorded a straightforward 6-4 6-2 victory over 25th seed Elise Mertens to advance to the fourth round at the French Open, where she will play the winner of Elina Svitolina and Ana Bogdan.

First up on Court Philippe-Chatrier, the No. 4 seed was victorious in just over an hour and admitted afterwards that she is pleased with where her game is going, saying she is playing with a lot of “confidence".

But it wasn’t her confidence that caught the eye of Eurosport’s Alex Corretja. The Spaniard knows a thing or two about playing on clay, having made the finals of Roland-Garros on two occasions.

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He was quick to note just what is enabling Rybakina to scythe her way through the draw with such ease, with the No. 4 seed yet to drop a set.

“She can hit winners all over the place, with the forehand, the backhand, the serve," Corretja told Eurosport.

"The ball is so hard all the time, I’m jealous of her power, I would say. She also has the feel, even if she hits very hard. Mertens is a smart player but has a lack of power to over-power Elena. She dictated so much.”

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Rybakina’s match was played under the roof, with weather once again wrecking havoc with the outdoor nature of the French Open. As such, conditions remained heavy – something that is also playing into the hands of the former Wimbledon champion.

“I don’t think there are that many clay-court specialists on the women’s side, because pretty much they play with a lot of flatness on their shots,” Corretja continued.

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“Maybe Iga [Swiatek] and Coco Gauff, they play with some more top-spin, maybe even Paula Badosa. Even Ons [Jabeur] plays quite flat.

“But the fact they are playing in these heavy conditions, I think Rybakina likes it as she can hit as hard as she wants, she’s not missing, and it’s difficult to move her.

Elise Mertens v Elena Rybakina - Roland-Garros highlights

"If it’s a little bit faster, maybe she gets a little bit off balance, but it’s not the case in these conditions with the roof on, with the heavy clay, so I think she likes the way it’s going this year at Roland-Garros, raining every day.”

With the conditions suiting her style of play, Rybakina stands a good chance of going far in this year’s tournament – the Kazakhstani player having made one quarter-final here back in 2021.

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