No more French in the singles after Ponchet was eliminated by Wozniacki in the third round

No more French players are entered in singles at the US Open tennis tournament after Jessika Ponchet (world number 143) was eliminated in the third round by the Danish Caroline Wozniacki (71) 6-3, 6-2 on Saturday August 31 in New York.

Ponchet, who had benefited from the withdrawal of world number four Elena Rybakina in the previous round, had prolonged the French adventure a little, when all the others had been eliminated at the latest on Thursday in the second round.

This is another snub at a major tournament for a French tennis team that is losing momentum, after the disastrous Olympic Games in Paris a month ago – no quarter-finalists, no matter the event. The absence of a French representative in the round of 16 of the last Grand Slam of the season is repeated, after 2021 and 2023. In the men’s competition, no French player has even reached the third round this year, a first since 1995. This is despite fourteen entries in the men’s competition, the second largest contingent behind the United States (seventeen), and seven in the women’s competition, the fifth largest contingent.

The best tournament of Jessika Ponchet’s career

On Saturday, Jessika Ponchet, 27, who despite everything had the best major tournament of her career, was weighed down by twenty-seven unforced errors.

“The experience was crazy, I had never won a match here, here I am in the third round having passed the qualifications, having only played good matches won in two sets, so it’s true that the experience, whatever happens, it’s there, so I’m still super happy with the tournament”she commented.

Ponchet was put under pressure from the start by Wozniacki, 34, a former world number one who returned to the circuit a year ago after a second pregnancy. The Frenchwoman never managed to put the Dane in danger on her serve, with no break points, in 1 hour 15 of play.

“I really returned very badly, it’s a shame. I lack consistency. The advantage, however, is that I can improve my game on all levels, whether it’s attacks, volleys, first serve percentage, returns, the areas on the volley that I play, and physicality.”added the player who has been training for several months with the former French number one Nathalie Tauziat.