Tennis Tracker: Alcaraz, Swiatek and Sabalenka all safely through at French Open

Alcaraz's quest to defend his title continues
Alcaraz's quest to defend his title continuesČTK / imago sportfotodienst / Julien Mattia / Le Pictorium / Flashscore
The third round of the French Open gets underway today, with some of the world's best players looking to secure their spot in the second week in Paris.

23:57 CET - In the final women's match of the day, 13th seed Elina Svitolina beat Bernarda Pera 7-6 (5), 7-6 (5) in a tight fight that lasted for well over two hours

23:51 CET - Carlos Alcaraz is through! Things started to get rocky when he lost the third set and went a break down in the fourth, but the reigning champion regrouped and secured a 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over Damir Dzumhur.

The Spaniard will face Ben Shelton in the next round.

21:55 CET - Frances Tiafoe has won an all-American clash with Sebastian Korda, claiming a 7-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory to move into the fourth round for the first time in his career.

Alcaraz looks likely to join him with the Spaniard currently two sets up.

21:48 CET - In a hugely disappointing bit of news for the host nation, their men's number one and last French player standing Arthur Fils has been forced to withdraw from the tournament with an injury.

Read more here.

20:18 CET - The defending champion is on court in Paris, with Carlos Alcaraz about to get underway against world number 69 Damir Dzumhur.

Follow every point of the clash here.

19:58 CET - Ben Shelton is the next man into the fourth round, after a straightforward 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 win over the man who conquered Stefanos Tsitsipas, Matteo Gigante.

19:38 CET - German Daniel Altmaier fought from a set down to overcome 21-year-old Hamad Medjedovic, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-2, and move into the last 16 in Roland Garros.

18:48 CET - Fourth seed Jasmine Paolini has advanced without too much trouble, claiming a 6-4, 6-1 win over Yuliia Starodubtseva.

18:40 CET - Elena Rybakina has eased through a match that looked set to be tricky, with the world number 12 beating Jelena Ostapenko 6-2. 6-2.

She'll next face Swiatek for the third time this season.

17:18 CET - World number 10 Holger Rune has prevailed in another match that has gone all the way, disappointing the home crowd by beating Frenchman Quentin Halys 4-6, 6-2, 5-7, 7-5, 6-2.

Next up for the Dane is a mouthwatering clash with Lorenzo Musetti.

17:08 CET - Tommy Paul has won an absolute epic! In a battle that lasted for over four hours, the 12th seed beat Karen Khachanov 6-3, 3-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3.

He's now won two five-setters in a row.

The match stats
The match statsFlashscore

17:01 CET - The reigning champion marches on! Iga Swiatek has progressed after seeing off Jaqueline Cristian 6-2, 7-5 in just under two hours.

16:29 CET - Alexei Popyrin has won a three-hour battle with Nuno Borges, prevailing 6-4, 7-6 (11), 7-6 (5) to move into the round of 16.

14:40 CET - For two sets, Lorenzo Musetti was given a real scare as he struggled to hit top gear. Yet in the end, the in-form Italian had too much quality as he overcame Mariano Navone, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 to reach the fourth round.

14:02 CET - Liudmila Samsonova had little issue in her third-round match at Roland Garros, overcoming Dayana Yastremska, 6-2, 6-3 in just under an hour and a half.

13:34 CET - World No. 1 and the favourite for the French Open title, Aryna Sabalenka, has continued her ruthless form, swatting aside Olga Danilovic, 6-2, 6-3 to progress to the second week. She will face Amanda Anisimova in what should be a really exciting fourth-round encounter.

13:07 CET - Amanda Anisimova has been playing some great tennis at this year's French Open, and the American is showing no signs of slowing down with an impressive 7-6(4), 6-4 victory over Clara Tauson.

12:38 CET  - Olympic champion Qinwen Zheng has continued to showcase her fabulous form at Roland Garros, moving into the fourth round with a 6-3, 6-4 win over talented 18-year-old Victoria Mboko.

11:10 CET - Play is now getting underway in the French capital, and you can follow the men's action here and the women's right here.

10:53 CET - The tennis on Thursday was absolutely fantastic, so ahead of the start of play today, why don't you check out yesterday's best moments?

09:00 CET - Good morning and welcome back to the Tennis Tracker this Friday morning! The third round is here at the French Open, as we get closer to the second week of the tournament.

First up on Philippe-Chatrier, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka takes on Olga Danilovic in what could be a really intriguing encounter, while Lorenzo Musetti gets proceedings underway on Suzanne-Lenglen. Olympic champion Qinwen Zheng and Amanda Anisimova will also be in early action on the other courts.

Defending champion Iga Swiatek will follow soon after, with Carlos Alcaraz facing Damir Dzumhur in the evening session. Jasmine Paolini, Holger Rune and Ben Shelton are the other names set to take to the court.

However, in arguably the two best matches of the day, former champion Jelena Ostapenko comes up against Elena Rybakina, and Tommy Paul clashes with Karen Khachanov

Play begins at 11:00 CET.