Zheng to meet surging Mboko next at Roland Garros; Paolini also advances

Zheng Qinwen won a tough two-setter over Emiliana Arango at Roland Garros to set up a third-round meeting with 18-year-old Victoria Mboko, who improved to 42-5 in 2025 with a win over Eva Lys.

Zheng Qinwen may be only 22 years old, but she's already having to fend off hungry newcomers at Roland Garros.

The No. 8 seed overcame the challenge of Emiliana Arango 6-2, 6-3 in a 1-hour, 37-minute contest that was a good deal tougher than the scoreline suggested. Arango was one of nine players making her Grand Slam debut in this year's main draw, and Zheng will next face another -- the surging 18-year-old qualifier Victoria Mboko, who advanced 6-4, 6-4 over Eva Lys.

Roland Garros: Draws | Scores | 411

Zheng's win over Arango was the Olympic gold medalist Zheng's eighth consecutive victory on the clay courts of Roland Garros -- a very different venue to her only previous meeting with the Colombian. That came during the more modest days of a COVID-era ITF W25 in Hamburg in 2021, a stretch when Zheng crisscrossed Europe by car chasing ranking points to break into the Top 100. They met in the first qualifying round. Zheng was a 6-4, 6-4 victor, and went on to win the trophy, one of six ITF titles she racked up in a 10-month timeframe.

Four years on, Zheng will face a player who's been putting together a similarly spectacular run at ITF level. Mboko has traveled to the Caribbean, the United States, the United Kingdom and Portugal to rack up five titles this year, as well as reaching her first WTA 125 final in Parma.

The Canadian's two outings at WTA 1000 level both ended in three-set second-round defeats to Top 15 players, Paula Badosa in Miami and Coco Gauff in Rome. In the first major of her career, Mboko has yet to drop a set as she's improved her season record to a remarkable 42-5.

Against Lys, No. 120-ranked Mboko excelled in all areas of the game. She claimed an opening break with a booming backhand winner, and though Lys pegged her back, struck again at 4-4 with a pair of superb forehands down the line. The teenager delivered a perfect drop shot-lob combination en route to serving out the first set and converted her first match point with her second ace of the day.

Zheng pays tribute to Arango's defense

The roar Zheng let out after converting her third match point was indicative of the bruising, physical exchanges she'd had to endure to quell the World No. 85, particularly in a second set in which 22 points lasted nine shots or more -- frequently grueling rallies in which both players threw both heavy topspin and biting slices at each other. Fifteen of those were won by Arango.

"It's not easy to play against her," Zheng told on-court interviewer Marion Bartoli. "She had great defense skills. When I see a short ball I say, 'OK, you got to go to the net to finish the point whatever happens,' because if we stay on the baseline she's going to put all the balls back, which is a very difficult match."

That tactic paid off for Zheng, who won 18 out of 21 points at net and tallied 31 winners overall.

Paolini eases past Tomljanovic in straight sets

Zheng was joined by another Top 10 seed, No. 4 Jasmine Paolini, who came through 6-3, 6-3 over Ajla Tomljanovic on Court Philippe-Chatrier. The Rome champion extended her winning streak to eight matches and counting.

The Italian fell before the third round in her first 16 Grand Slam main draws. Now, she has reached that stage for the sixth major in a row. Last year's finalist was in control for the majority of her first encounter with Tomljanovic, striking 24 winners and capturing nine out of 11 points at net.

After sealing a 3-0 double-break lead in the second set with a return winner, Paolini's only blip of the contest came as she committed back-to-back double faults to drop serve for the only time. The Italian was able to find her best tennis in the most important moments, though. At 4-3, she fended off a point for Tomljanovic to level the set, then found a spectacular crosscourt forehand en route to holding. In the final game, Paolini outdid Tomljanovic with a reflexed passing shot, before the Australian coughed up her third double fault of the day down match point.

Paolini will next face either Cluj-Napoca champion Anastasia Potapova or qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva.

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