By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, May 27, 2026
Photo credit: Antoine Couvercelle/ROLEX
Trampolining high off the terre battue, Iga Swiatek soared in a series of kangaroo jumps.
Even when the ball wasn’t in play, Swiatek was ready for launch.
A dynamic Swiatek bounced 35th-ranked Sara Bejlek 6-2, 6-3 to land in the Roland Garros third round for the eighth consecutive season.
Four-time French Open champion Swiatek raced out to 4-1 leads in both sets, but the left-handed Bejlek played some of her best tennis late in each set to extend them.
Overall, Swiatek should be pleased with her 71 percent first-serve percentage and her fast start in both sets.
There were some sloppy patches of play as well.
Former No. 1 Swiatek scattered 38 unforced errors, hit six double faults and won just seven of 25 second-serve points. Credit Bejlek for firing her forehand with ambition in converting four of five break points.
Still, Swiatek solidified her status as a strong frontrunner in Paris: the Pole improved to 42-3 lifetime at Roland Garros, including an immaculate 38-0 mark when winning the first set.
After Swiatek stamped a 93-minute victory, her coach, Francisco Roig, was spotted scouting her third-round opponent: either 2017 Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko or compatriot Magda Linette.
The 29th-seeded Ostapenko has been a career-long nightmare nemesis for Swiatek winning all six of their prior meetings. The 2023 Australian Open semifinalist Linette has split two prior meetings with Swiatek. Linette beat Swiatek 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 at the Miami Open in March—a defeat that prompted Swiatek to split with coach Wim Fissette and hire her hero, Rafael Nadal’s ex-coach Roig.