Alexander Zverev advanced to the Roland Garros quarter-finals on Sunday after comfortably defeating Jesper de Jong.
Zverev proved too strong for the Dutch lucky loser, winning 7-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Court Philippe Chatrier.
The German is the runaway favourite to win his first Grand Slam title following the early exits of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic.
However, he faces a tricky test in the next round: Rafael Jodar.
Can Rafael Jodar fill the void left by Carlos Alcaraz?
He’s certainly stepped up in his absence so far…
Zverev has offered his thoughts on the Spaniard, who has quickly emerged as one of the brightest young talents on the ATP Tour.
Alexander Zverev previews his contest against Rafael Jodar
Rafael Jodar is a sensation.
The youngster, who only turned professional at the start of this year, has already risen to world number 29; and he is set to rise further following his stellar run in Paris.
The 19-year-old has reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final on only his second major tournament appearance, beating James Duckworth and Alex Michelsen en route.
Jodar, who came back from two sets down to defeat Pablo Carreno Busta on Sunday, will play Alexander Zverev for the first time in the French Open quarter-finals.
“I think he’s playing incredibly,” Zverev said of Jodar after beating De Jong on Sunday, as reported by Jose Moron of Punto de Break.
Rafael Jodar’s projected path to the 2026 Roland Garros title
- Quarter-finals: Alexander Zverev
- Semi-finals: Joao Fonseca / Jakub Mensik
- Final: Felix Auger-Aliassime / Flavio Cobolli
“He started the clay season outside the Top 100 and now he’s close to the Top 20. He deserves a ton of credit.
“I’m really looking forward to facing him for the first time and I hope it’s a great match. I’ve followed him quite a bit during the clay season.”
“It’ll be a really nice experience,” Jodar said ahead of his clash with Zverev. “After all, these are the matches that when you’re a kid and you watch the Grand Slams on TV, Roland Garros and all that, you dream of playing someday.
“You don’t get to play against a world number three in a Roland Garros quarter-final every day.”
Rafael Jodar tipped to compete with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner ‘very soon’
Jodar looked to be in serious trouble when he fell two sets behind to former US Open finalist Pablo Carreno Busta.
However, the young Spaniard quickly turned the tide before eventually beating his compatriot 4-6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2.
Carreno Busta, the former world number 10, recognised his opponent’s potential.
“He’ll be able to compete with Carlos and Jannik very soon,” the Spaniard said, as reported by Jose Moron of Punto de Break.
“I don’t know if he can do it right now, but definitely very soon.
“He’s 19 years old, it’s his first year on the circuit, he still has a lot of room to improve.”
If Jodar defeats Alexander Zverev on Tuesday, he will play Joao Fonseca or Jakub Mensik in the semi-finals.
Fonseca defeated Casper Ruud in a fourth-round match plagued by line-call controversy, while Mensik came through a five-set thriller against Andrey Rublev.