Alexander Zverev defeats Quentin Halys to advance into Roland Garros round of 16

The German world No. 3 dropped a set against the spirited French home favorite but clinical execution guided him safely into the second week at Roland Garros.

Foto: Reuters

Amid a tournament of unpredictable upsets and major draw clearances, Alexander Zverev avoided the slip-ups to book his place in the Roland Garros round of 16. The world No. 3 secured a hard-fought 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 victory over French home favorite Quentin Halys (90th) in a late-night battle that lasted three hours and 7 minutes.

Playing past midnight under the lights in the French capital, Zverev initially established complete dominance. The German used his massive first serve and deep baseline groundstrokes to claim the opening two sets comfortably. However, Halys, fueled by an energetic and passionate Parisian crowd, found an extra gear in the third set.

Halys raised his aggression levels significantly, taking early balls and capitalizing on Zverev's temporary passive play. The Frenchman broke at a crucial moment to secure the third frame 5-7, extending the suspense of the match.

"He played incredibly in the third set. He was very aggressive there and took his chances. I was able to raise my level again after that and I'm happy to have finished the match," Zverev stated during his on-court interview at 12:50 AM local time.

Zverev re-established control in the fourth set, cleaning up his unforced errors and breaking Halys early to run away with a clinical 6-2 finish.

With Carlos Alcaraz out due to injury, alongside the previous eliminations of tournament heavyweights Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic, Zverev remains the highest-seeded player left in the draw. The German star is heavily favored to chase his elusive maiden Grand Slam title, having previously finished as a runner-up in three major finals: the US Open (2020), Roland Garros (2024), and the Australian Open (2025).

Zverev will next face Dutch lucky loser Jesper De Jong (106th), who caused a major upset earlier in the day by defeating 15th seed Karen Khachanov in a grueling five-set match.