Madison Keys is loving the recent balmy temperatures in Paris - can Victoria Mboko keep her cool to make it through to the fourth round at RG for the first time?
Madison Keys (9) vs Victoria Mboko (19)
If ever there was a time for Madison Keys to take on Victoria Mboko, it is now. It is not that the young Canadian star is under the weather or playing badly – far from it – it is just that Keys is loving the conditions this week. Where others have struggled in the heat, she has thrived in it. Growing up in Florida, she is used to the broiling sun and the effect that it has on the clay courts is perfect for her.
“I love it; I love it so much,” she said happily. “I can't remember a Roland-Garros where it was this hot for this many days. It plays super bouncy and fast. I think the ball kind of moves through the court really quick.”
It may not be quite like the hard courts that have brought her so much success over the years (the Australian Open title last year and a runner-up spot at the US Open in 2017) but it is the next best thing.
She has been quietly going about her business in the first week, moving past her first two opponents for the loss of only 11 games. But in Mboko, she faces a different kind of challenge.
This is only Mboko’s second year on the WTA Tour but she has hit the ground running: two titles won last year and three finals reached this year. At only 19, she is already the world No.9 (Keys, 31, is the No.19) and she has just started working with Wim Fissette. The Belgian coach has trained a string of Grand Slam champions and Mboko feels their relationship has got off to a flying start.
Victoria Mboko on Serena Williams
“I really like how he's working with my strengths and what I'm good at, and we try to make it better and use it to my advantage,” she said. “I feel like it's really helped me, and it's really been giving me a lot of confidence on the court with just getting better each day a little bit by a little bit of what we can do to make me more aggressive or these little tweaks here and there.”
She also has some very famous sets of eyes following her progress, a certain Serena Williams being one keen observer. Serena is expected to make her comeback at Queen’s Club in London the week after next – and Mboko is reportedly playing doubles with her there. This left our young superstar slightly tongue-tied.
“I'm very happy,” she said, laughing. “Me and Serena have stayed in touch, which is really, really nice, because you know, I really look up to her. I mean, the fact that she even knows me is very exciting. I want to kind of let the moment for her. I feel like if she's ready to come back on her own terms, then I feel like it's up to her to announce that.”
In the meantime, there is her match with Keys to focus on. Fissette is giving her the confidence to attack and the records show that she has the ability to do it: their only previous meeting was in Adelaide in January when Mboko won in three sets.
Flavio Cobolli (10) vs Learner Tien (18)
At the age of 24, Cobolli has every right to consider himself a young, up-and-coming player (now ranked No.14, he had his breakout Grand Slam run last summer reaching the quarterfinals at Wimbledon) but, by Tien’s standards, the Italian is old news. Tien is 20 and the world No.18. He has two titles to his name – one won last year, one this – and he is one of the new generation of stars in the making.
“I feel like all the young guys coming up, they want to prove themselves,” Tien said. “I think a lot of the guys coming up really have a lot of belief in themselves that they belong at this level, and that they can challenge the top guys for these events. I think that's huge. I think just believing is a huge first step, and I think a lot of these younger guys, myself included, are just very eager to go out and prove themselves.” He proved himself against Cobolli last year on a hard court in Beijing by winning in straight sets.
Naomi Osaka (16) vs Iva Jovic (17)
Osaka must remember what it feels like to be Jovic, to be the teenage sensation making her mark on the WTA Tour. For Jovic, this is all so new: this is her first third-round appearance here (and only her second visit to Roland-Garros). She has never played or even practised with Osaka before and – most importantly for her – she has had another chance to meet Novak Djokovic, her idol.
They first met in Australia in January as she was motoring to the quarter-finals and she met him again here. And like any 18-year-old in the presence of a living legend, she was utterly starstruck. “Obviously, starstruck,” she gushed. "Everything is starstruck here. It's starstruck to be here, right? Maybe one day I'll wake up and it will all sink in.” What has sunk in is what she has to do on Saturday against Osaka. “She has great offence, so hopefully I cannot let her strike and do what she can do very well,” Jovic said. “Hopefully I can make her a bit uncomfortable.”
Moise Kouame vs Alejandro Tabilo
France has a new hero: step forward Moise Kouame, the 17-year-old Parisian who set the place alight on Thursday as he battled for nearly five hours to beat Adolfo Vallejo in five sets. A wildcard entry with a ranking of No.318, he plays like a seasoned pro and he fights like a heavyweight boxer. On the evidence of this debut, Moise will go far. And he thinks big.
“Winning Roland-Garros is, of course, a dream,” he said, “but winning all four is a dream actually, you know. Being world No.1 is also a dream.” Well, that’s the next few months taken care of, then. But before he gets to the top, he needs to get past Tabilo on Saturday. He knows that he will have the crowd behind him and he knows how to use that energy to his advantage. “Actually in practice, I practise those kind of things, you know?” he said. “It's something I've always dreamed to do, get the crowd going and making a bit of a show on court, of course, is something that I like.” Oh, yes, Moise will go far.
ROLAND-GARROS
18 May - 7 June 2026
