2025 French Open results: Americans continue hot start after Tommy Paul’s thriller, Ben Shelton’s dominance

Tommy Paul held off Karen Khachanov in five sets and Ben Shelton dominated Matteo Gigante Friday at the French Open to highlight a strong outing from the American men. There’s guaranteed to be three Americans in the fourth round in Paris for the first time since 1994 once Francis Tiafoe and Sebastian Korda conclude their afternoon match. Ethan Quinn plays his third-round match Saturday morning against Tallon Griekspoor and has an opportunity to be the fourth American to move on.

An American is trying to win a Grand Slam on clay in men’s singles for the first time since Andre Agassi took out Andriy Medvedev in 1999. Andy Roddick is the last American to win a Grand Slam in men’s singles, doing so in 2003 at the U.S. Open.

Playing for the first time in five days, Shelton overpowered the left-handed Gigante, 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 with a bevy of crosscourt forehands and his trademark big serve. Shelton should have some of the freshest legs in the field after playing eight total sets up to this point after going five with Lorenzo Sonego on May 25 before getting an unexpected break in the second round after opponent, Hugo Gaston, withdrew due to abdominal pain.

Tiafoe and Korda are same side of the draw as top-seed and World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, who has never reached a French Open final despite winning three Grand Slams since 2024. Sinner hasn’t lost a set over his first two matches and should cruise against Jiri Lehecka in Saturday’s third-round bout.

Paul survives another French marathon

By the three-hour, 49-minute mark of the match, 12th-seeded Paul slammed a forehand winner in the fourth game before getting the double break after Karen Khachanov’s ensuring return hit the net. During the broadcast, John McEnroe alluded to Paul’s coach, Brad Stine, cautioning Paul to take deep breaths between points and pace himself in the fifth to avoid cramps.

Paul closed out the match on his serve a few games later with an overhead smash followed by an unforced error and wrapped his third career win over Khachanov in as many chances with a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(7), 3-6, 6-3 victory. After consecutive five-setters on clay, Paul appeared to be still dealing with an abdominal strain that worsened at its height during his second-round win over Márton Fucsovics.

McEnroe said during the broadcast just before match point he was surprised at how well Paul was “hustling” the net despite what looked like leg cramps in the fifth set.

“Like a million bucks, I feel pretty good,” Paul said Friday when asked about his physical condition. “I love playing in front of you guys, it’s been an awesome crowd for my first three matches here, I appreciate all the support. Hopefully we can keep it going. I love this stuff, it’s so much fun playing out here, honestly. 

“Not all matches are four hours long, but that was an awesome battle on both ends of the court. We both played well and that’s what it’s all about.”

Paul, after his 200th career win, will play Alexei Popyrin on Sunday with the winner moving on to the quarterfinals to potentially face Shelton or defending French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz, who plays Damir Dzumhur on Friday night. Popyrin advanced with a straight-set win over Nuno Borges, 6-4, 7-6 (11), 7-6 (5).

What will it take to break the streak in Paris?

After top American seed Taylor Fritz’s stunning first-round loss this week, the states’ perceived best shot to snap its Grand Slam skid was out with a flash. Perhaps Shelton, who reached the Australian Open semifinals earlier this year, breaks through with his first major or Paul can get to a showdown with Alcaraz, whom he’s beaten twice in six career matchups.

Tiafoe’s best Grand Slam finish was a semifinal appearance last year at the U.S. Open while Korda has twice reached the fourth round at Wimbledon and the French.

“Jannik and Alcaraz are not going to win every title,” McEnroe said before the start of the French Open. “But then again, I didn’t think the other three guys (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic) were going to win as much as they did So, I don’t know.”