Elise Mertens beats world number 3 at Roland Garros to reaches round of 16

Elise Mertens qualified for the round of 16 at the French Open on Friday. The Belgian beat American Jessica Pegula, ranked third in the world, in two sets: 6-1, 6-3. It is the third time Mertens has reached the fourth round of the tournament.

The crowd was on the side of the Belgian underdog. "This felt like a home match. Thanks to all the supporters," Mertens said during her post-match interview at Roland Garros. Her last win against a player from the top five was in May 2021, when she beat Romanian Simona Halep in Madrid.

Mertens - currently ranked 28th in the world - will meet the winner of the match between Russians Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Anastasia Potapova in the round of 16. If she wins that match, she will reach the quarter-final of the French Open for the first time in her career.

Mertens will play another match later on Friday. She is playing in the doubles tournament with Australian Storm Hunter.

^{#FlandersNewsService | © JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP}