Pegula Loses to Boisson, Updated French Open Women's Bracket, Roland-Garros Results
Loïs Boisson's underdog run at Roland-Garros continues after she upset No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula in three sets, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Monday in the fourth round.
Boisson, a wild-card entry and the No. 361 player in the world, is through to her first career Grand Slam quarterfinal. A meeting with sixth-seeded Mirra Andreeva awaits in the next round.
Given the gulf in their respective résumés, Pegula entered as the heavy favorite, and it looked after one set like the match would be as straightforward as expected. The American was dominant on serve and hit 15 winners to four for Boisson in the opening frame.
Buoyed by a partisan Court Philippe-Chatrier crowd, Boisson battled back in the second set, though. She and Pegula exchanged service breaks before Pegula held and took a 4-3 lead.
That's when Boisson flipped a switch, claiming the next three games and leveling the match at one set apiece. Her momentum carried over into the decisive set as she jumped ahead 2-0.
Things finally started to click again for Pegula as she earned a critical break and turned the tables, going ahead 3-2.
Boisson appeared to be serious danger serving at 3-4 and trailing 0-30 in the game. Dropping her serve so late into the match would have been a near-fatal setback. Instead, the Frenchwoman hit a 115-mph ace en route to holding.
A marathon ninth game, which took nearly 12 minutes to complete, largely determined the match. Pegula was unable to capitalize on three opportunities to secure the game and then found herself having to stave off break-point chance after break-point chance. On Boisson's fourth try, Pegula hit a forehand into the net to put herself on the brink.
An equally dramatic game followed with Pegula again failing to finish the job on four break points. With Boisson eventually serving for the match, she pushed the American out wide before hitting a powerful forehand down the line.
At this stage, Boisson is playing with house money. She couldn't play at Roland-Garros in 2024 after tearing her ACL and now she's deeper into a Grand Slam event than she's ever been.
If the 22-year-old manages to upset Andreeva too, then this will be a Cinderella story for the ages.
