Boisson stuns Pegula to reach French Open quarters

World No. 361 Lois Boisson, a 22-year-old French tennis player, pulled off a stunning upset by advancing to the quarterfinals of the women’s singles at the French Open, one of the sport’s four major tournaments.

On June 2 local time at Roland Garros in Paris, Boisson defeated world No. 3 Jessica Pegula of the United States 2–1 in the fourth round of women’s singles. Entering the tournament as a wildcard, Boisson became the lowest-ranked woman to reach the French Open quarterfinals since 1985. This is also her first time competing in the main draw of a Grand Slam singles event.

Despite her low ranking, Boisson gained widespread attention this April during the WTA Tour’s Rouen Open. In the first round of the tournament, her opponent, Harriet Dart of Britain, was caught on broadcast asking the umpire to “please tell her to put on deodorant; she smells really bad.” Dart later apologized, saying, “I take full responsibility for my mistake. I will learn from this and try to be a better person.”

Boisson, for her part, responded coolly by posting a photo of a deodorant product on social media. In a press interview during the French Open, she said, “I didn’t care that much. Dart might have made a mistake, and I just responded with a joke.”


김정훈기자 hun@donga.com