Roland Garros sensation: Sabalenka out, Kostyuk’s chances rise
Marta Kostyuk (photo: Getty Images)
At Roland Garros 2026, the biggest sensation of the tournament erupted. The “neutral” world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka suffered a crushing defeat to Russia’s Diana Shnaider in the quarterfinals and left Paris, according to the official match results.
10 consecutive games and a bagel for the world No. 1
The match on the Paris clay lasted 2 hours and 14 minutes and ended with a dominant final score in favor of Shnaider — 3:6, 7:5, 6:0.
The match followed a classic Sabalenka scenario, as she confidently took the first set and led the second set 5:3.
However, just one step away from victory, the world No. 1 suffered a catastrophic mental and performance collapse.
Shnaider took control, winning an incredible 10 games in a row and literally destroying her opponent in the deciding set, handing Sabalenka a humiliating bagel (6:0).
Thanks to this comeback, Shnaider became the last semifinalist of the Grand Slam and will face the tournament’s main sensation in the semifinal — Poland’s Maja Chwalińska (ranked 114th in the WTA rankings).
Marta Kostyuk — main favorite of Roland Garros 2026
Sabalenka’s exit completely reshaped the betting odds.
Since defending champion Iga Świątek was eliminated by Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in the round of 16, the 23-year-old Ukrainian is now officially the main favorite to win Roland Garros.
On Thursday, June 4, at around 16:00 Kyiv time, Kostyuk will play her historic semifinal on Court Philippe-Chatrier against Russia’s Mirra Andreeva (world No. 8).
- Kostyuk factor: Marta is having the best season of her career and remains undefeated on clay, with a remarkable 17-match winning streak (including titles in Rouen and the WTA 1000 in Madrid).
- Head-to-head: The Ukrainian has a psychological advantage over Andreeva, having beaten her twice this year (in Brisbane and in the Madrid final mentioned above).
- Betting forecast: Experts consider Kostyuk the favorite in this key matchup. Her odds of winning are 1.72 compared to 2.10 for the Russian player.
If successful, Marta Kostyuk will become the first Ukrainian tennis player in history to reach a Grand Slam singles final.
Earlier, we reported that legendary Serena Williams will return to the court at age 44 for one goal.
