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Jakub Mensik v Alexander Zverev: French Open 2026 men’s semi-finals – live | French Open 2026
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Second set: Mensik* 5-7, 2-4 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Mensik, his face still betraying no emotion, holds to love. That’ll have felt good. But Zverev’s response won’t, as he sees Mensik’s love hold and matches it. The all-Italian affair between Flavio Cobolli and Matteo Arnaldi is coming up after this, with the match getting under way not before 7pm Paris time (6pm BST). At this rate Zverev will have showered, done his press and had some dinner by the time it begins.
Second set: Mensik* 5-7, 1-3 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Jim Courier, on the TNT Sports commentary, lists the other male players, along with Zverev, who lost their first three slam finals: Lendl, Agassi, Ivanisevic, Murray, Thiem and Ruud. Of those, Zverev and Ruud are still searching for that breakthrough. But Zverev’s looking in the form to change that as he backs up the break, from deuce. At the moment he’s in full control of this semi-final.
Zverev breaks: Mensik 5-7, 1-2 Zverev* (*denotes next server)
Zverev has Mensik on the ropes at 15-40. Mensik decides to deal with the break points just as he did in the first set, with a drop shot. This one appears to be more successful, as he gets back Zverev’s reply, but the problem is he becomes a sitting target at the net in the process, and Zverev zaps the ball back, and Mensik, with hardly any time to respond, can only frame the ball well wide! Zverev is roaring and at the moment he’s soaring into the final. Mensik, stoically, looks rather emotionless.
Second set: Mensik* 5-7, 1-1 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Zverev has still dropped only one set this tournament, and he did to Mensik in that first set what he did to the new Rafa on the block, Rafael Jodar, in the quarter-finals, coming out on top in the big moments. Speaking of which … last night I watched the Rafa documentary on Netflix, in which he reveals the extent of the chronic pain he was dealing with during his career. It got me thinking: has there ever been a sportsperson so willing to suffer for success, who’s fought so hard against their body while achieving so much? It’s astonishing he was able to win 14 French Open titles (it still seems ridiculous writing that number, even four years on from his last title in Paris) while playing in such pain for 13 of those. But anyway, I digress. A hold apiece from Mensik and Zverev, and this second set gets going with two holds.
Zverev wins the first set 7-5!
15-0, 30-0, 40-0. Three set points. Mensik provides some resistance, taking the next two points, but it ultimately proves to be futile, as Zverev seals the set from 40-30 with an ace down the T. A smart set from Zverev, who waited patiently for his chance, and seized it when it came.
Zverev breaks: Mensik 5-6 Zverev* (*denotes next server)
Mensik is wavering, and a couple of double faults get Zverev to 30-all. A huge point. Will it be break point – which if Zverev wins it, will leave him serving for the set – or game point? It’s break point, a first of the match for Zverev, as he batters a backhand winner that leaves Mensik rooted to the spot, looking as if he has feet of clay. Mensik decides this break point calls for a drop shot, of which he’s hit so many throughout this set, but Zverev is smart to it, zooms forward, whips the ball over … and Mensik nets!
First set: Mensik* 5-5 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Certainly not immediately, as Mensik secures a love hold, his first of this semi-final, which leaves Zverev serving to stay in the opening set. Which the second seed does with relative ease, landing a couple of aces, but he’s not looking quite as sharp from the baseline as he was a few games ago, it has to be said.
First set: Mensik* 4-4 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Zverev is serving with the new balls, but slides 15-30 down. He appears to be dealing with the slight scoreboard pressure, bossing the point, moving forward, dispatching a nice angled volley … but Mensik, improbably, pulls off a backhand pass down the line! Agassi and his son Jaden, who’s a baseball player having decided at a young age that tennis wasn’t for him (the idea of trying to emulate his dad’s success, along with his mum Steffi Graf’s, probably wasn’t too appealing), are applauding. It’s 15-40 and here are the first break points of the match, and for all the of the pressure Zverev has had on Mensik’s serve, these BPs are for Mensik. A good serve out wide, followed by a big forehand, and Zverev saves them both, before fending off a third too and holding! A big opportunity missed by Mensik – will that come back to haunt him?
First set: Mensik 4-3 Zverev* (*denotes next server)
For Zverev, remember, this is an 11th grand slam semi-final and a fifth at Roland Garros; for Mensik this is a first. Zverev, who lost in the 2024 final having been two sets to one up against Carlos Alcaraz, in one of three major final defeats he’s endured, is pummelling Mensik’s backhand at 30-15, and it eventually breaks down under the pressure. 30-all. But a short, sharp point gets Mensik to 40-30. And he holds for his most comfortable service game so far.
First set: Mensik* 3-3 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Gasps as a dodgy bounce on the baseline catches Zverev unawares on the second point. But that’s as good as it gets for Mensik, who can’t make any further inroads on Zverev’s serve from 15-all. Zverev looks so calm is thinking very clearly out there; he’ll now hope he can convert all the pressure he’s had on Mensik’s serve into a break.
First set: Mensik 3-2 Zverev* (*denotes next server)
Zverev cracks another winner for 0-15, as Agassi, the 1999 champion, looks on approvingly. And Mensik coughs up his first double fault. 0-30. The Czech makes amends with an ace, and then a drop shot winner – already his seventh drop shot of the semi-final – restores parity at 30-all. Which develops into deuce, the third time Mensik has been taken this far on serve, and once again he slams the door on Zverev.
First set: Mensik* 2-2 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Pacy and punchy from Zverev on his backhand – which is one of the very best in the business – and it’s 30-0. Make that 40-0, with a textbook one-two attack. Now it’s his forehand that does the damage, as he rifles away a winner. The first love hold of this semi-final and Zverev is in the zone.
First set: Mensik 2-1 Zverev* (*denotes next server)
Zverev has been criticised in the past for playing too defensively in the biggest moments on the biggest stages, but he’s crunching the ball here and advances to 0-30 on Mensik’s serve. Mensik, with such soft hands for a man of his size, comes straight back with the next two points, and shows delicate touch at the net to bring up 40-30. For the third game in a row, they go to deuce, and Mensik’s cute drop shot brings up his advantage. And after a second deuce he holds.
First set: Mensik* 1-1 Zverev (*denotes next server)
Zverev looked slightly hesitant in the warm-up but the world No 3 shows great reflexes at the net to move 30-15 ahead. Mensik, wearing a white shirt and headband, black shorts, dumps a drop shot into the net as Zverev, clad all in black, extends his lead 40-15. But Mensik marmalises a backhand winner down the line and it’s deuce. Just as Mensik did at this stage in the previous game, Zverev steps it up, and takes the game with a nonchalant volley.
First set: Mensik 1-0 Zverev* (*denotes next server)
Talking of Mensik playing better against better players, he defeated Djokovic in three sets to win the Miami Open last year, his biggest title to date, and he also saw off Sinner in Doha this year. “I think Jakub is a player that was born for these types of matches, against big players in big stadiums,” his coach Tomas Josefus said in the build-up to this semi-final. And Mensik looks keen to prove the point as he glides to 40-15 on serve in the opening game … before stuttering as he’s pulled back to deuce … but he takes command from there, rounding things off with a dismissive volley. The 20-year-old is on the board.
Here’s the great Andre Agassi giving his thoughts: “They’re two guys with great backhands; I give them equal on the backhands. I give Zverev the advantage on serve, Mensik on the forehand. Mensik has nothing to lose and he plays better against better players. If Zverev is nervous and Mensik puts on some scoreboard pressure we may see some magic.”
Tik! Tok! Tik! Tok! They’re warming up. They’ve faced each other only once before, but it was just last month, on the clay in the Madrid last 16, with Zverev winning in three tight sets, 6-4, 6-7, 6-3, after Mensik had led by a break in the decider.
Zverev has spent four hours less on court at this French Open than Mensik, who’s played two five-setters – but Mensik has had two days off since his quarter-final win over Fonseca, he’s young and fit, so I’m not sure physicality will decide this. It’ll probably come down more to how they both handle the pressure, with Zverev, of course, sometimes struggling with self-belief in the biggest matches of his career. But, of course, he also has the freedom of knowing he’s not facing Sinner or Alcaraz.
Here they are, the 6ft 5in Mensik and 6ft 6in Zverev, giants both literally and metaphorically. Mensik arrives on court ahead of Zverev; the young Czech 26th seed will be hoping that’s a sign of things to come.
If you need to catch up on yesterday’s women’s semi-finals, Tumaini’s reports are here:
Preamble
Sinner. Alcaraz. Alcaraz. Sinner. Sinner. Alcaraz. Sinner. Alcaraz. Alcaraz … Zverev?
With Jannik Sinner evaporating in the second-round heat and Carlos Alcaraz exiting before the tournament had even started, Alexander Zverev has known for nine long days that he may never get a better chance to be the one who breaks Sincaraz’s duopoly of grand slam titles and finally make that step from the best male player to have not won a major – a label he must be absolutely sick of hearing – to slam champion.
So far Zverev has been playing with the freedom of a player who knows he doesn’t have to face his two tormentors, rather than the pressure of someone who’s expected to win. He’s dropped only one set en route to his 11th grand slam semi-final but, in truth, given the way the seeds have scattered, the 2024 runner-up hasn’t had to face a player of much note to get this far. While Jakub Mensik is raw and unproven at this stage of a slam, the 20-year-old Czech with the huge serve represents Zverev’s biggest challenge to date, having taken out Alex de Minaur and Andrey Rublev, before brilliantly neutralising the nuclear forehand of his fellow star in the making, Joao Fonseca, in the quarter-finals.
Zverev will hope all of his scars from grand slams past aren’t exposed by Mensik, who’s joined by two other semi-final debutants, Flavio Cobolli and Matteo Arnaldi, as they contest the first ever all-Italian men’s semi at a major – minus the most famous Italian of all. Arnaldi, the marathon man, has spent the most time on court in grand slam history to reach the last four, while Cobolli, a man of many superstitions, has been channelling his inner Rafa to break new ground, even using the 14-times champion’s favourite shower cubicle after every match. Sinner may be long gone, but this wildest and weirdest of French Opens could yet end with a bravissimo champion and Zverev being outshone by another Italian.
L’action commence: 14.30h à Paris/1.30pm BST. Allons-y!
The family of Shaun Burton, say they are “devastated” by the loss.
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Key events
In the opening half an hour against Cape Verde, Mikel Oyarzabal, the centre-forward, did not get a single touch.
Kyle Green gets in touch: “Your highlighting of Lalas and his absurdity is something that has prevented me from wanting to watch the coverage on Fox. While every channel has its pros and cons I just can’t.
“I’m 45 and probably the youngest of anyone who remembers him as a player instead of an opinionated insert insult here. As for the match this could be more competitive than it looks on paper Spain need a win the pressure is on them. Saudi Arabia could hold out for a draw and see what happens in their last match. “
News from the England camp, and it seems to be good news on Declan Rice.
“I’m ready and fit, raring to go. I was feeling a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time. Obviously, not a lot of people would have known that. It was all behind-the-scenes stuff but it was a smart decision.
“In the end, that last 20 minutes is probably where you pick up the most, and it’s where you play a 70-minute match. But that last 20 is where you really feel your body going for it. And I think it was a smart decision because the last few days I felt really, really good.”
Alex Reid has penned today’s weekend special Football Daily.
Portugal v Uzbekistan on Tuesday enticingly pits the incredibly nice, incredibly 41-year-old-superstar-tolerant Roberto Martínez against Fabio Cannavaro, who’s won a Ballon d’Or as a player and the Chinese Super League as a coach. While the fixture following that game really does see the dream of Thomas Tuchel – in his first international job with England – taking on Queiroz, who is in charge of his ninth national side with Ghana.
The expected formations are 4-2-3-1 for Spain, and 5-3-2 for the Saudi Arabians.
The Saudi team features two Donis changes: Ali Lajami, a defender, and Nasser Al Dawsari, a midfielder, are preferred to Mohammed Abu Al Shamat and Mohamed Kanno. You may recall Salem Al Dawsari, the Saudi captain, as the man who scored the winner against Argentina.
An entertaining read, even for those of us who have just seen the clips.
In a conversation where his co-panelist is casually reminiscing about his days playing alongside Messi or exchanging shirts with Ronaldo Nazário at the World Cup, what exactly is Lalas going to talk about – coming on as a second-half substitute for Earnie Stewart in a friendly against Scotland in 1998? Helping the Kansas City Wizards finish last in the 1999 MLS Western Conference? Did Lalas enjoy an elite playing career? No. But does he do the background reading that could compensate for his relative lack of standing in a conversation with titans like Henry and Zlatan? Also no. But is he charming or funny or charismatic or otherwise magnetic on screen? Eh, no.
For the record, I once interviewed Alexi Lalas on the challenge of playing against Romario in the 1994 World Cup. He had this to say:
“He could kill you in so many different ways. If you remember from that World Cup, he scored so many types of goals. That ranged from solo adventures to an outside-of-the-right-foot half-volley off a corner kick. Romario was both the most difficult to play against and the best that I have faced.
“Roberto Baggio was doing his thing, but in terms of consistency and living up to the hype, he [Romario] was the best. As with all stars, there was a moment when the fans sit up in their seats, and that was a feeling I got with Romario. When it got close to him and the potential for his involvement in a play was there, everybody sat up in their seat. They knew that something spectacular would be happening.”
Saturday’s match reports here.
The Saudi Arabia coach, and Blackburn legend, Georgios Donis, spoke about the challenges facing his team: “Spain is not the same team when Yamal or Williams are on the bench.
“While they still have plenty of possession, they lack the individual one-on-one penetration when these two are missing. I’m not saying it’s a problem for Spain, but when those players are missing, they play in a different way. We saw this very clearly against Cape Verde.
“We are playing against one of the best teams in the world, and it’s very important that when you play against these kinds of teams, you should enjoy the experience and respect the opponent, but not too much.
“It is very hard for any team playing against Spain to have any time in possession. So what we must do is to be more in control of our movement and compact, and when the ball goes through the lines, be able to defend dynamically.
“It’s nice to see miracles in football, and we’ve seen favourites losing against underdogs. Of course, it’s great for Saudi football to have a great memory of the result against Argentina, but we aren’t drawing anything from that.
“I think we’ll feel more pressure in that [Cape Verde] game than we will against Spain.”
The Spain coach, Luis De La Fuente had this to say in his Saturday press conference: “This generation of footballers is highly competitive and really fired up… It’s going to be a completely different story,” he said at his pre-match press conference on Saturday. There is no drama or crisis. The bottom line is simply that we need to win tomorrow.”
Four changes for Spain: Lamine Yamal, Pedro Porro, Dani Olmo and Alex Baena also come into the side with Marcos Llorente, Fabian Ruiz, Ferran Torres and Gavi dropping out.
The teams – Lamine Yamal starts
Spain: Simon, Porro, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella, Gonzalez, Rodri, Yamal, Olmo, Baena, Oyarzabal. Subs: Raya, Joan Garcia, Pubill, Grimaldo, Eric Garcia, Llorente, Merino, Torres, Fabian, Gavi, Pino, Williams, Zubimendi, Munoz, Iglesias.
Saudi Arabia: Al Owais, Abdulhamid, Tambakti, Lajami, Al Amri, Al Harbi, Nasser Al Dawsari, Al Khaibari, Al Juwayr, Al Buraikan, Salem Al Dawsari. Subs: Al Aqidi, Al Kassar, Majrashi, Yahya, Al Shehri, Al Boushal, Kadesh, Al Johani, Al Ghannam, Al Hajji, Al Hamdan, Mandash, Kanno, Thakri, Abu Al Shamat.
Referee: Raphael Claus (Brazil)
Perhaps one of the Saudi -players can write themselves into this high-grade selection?
Perhaps it can be their goalkeeper.
Madrid screening of Spain v Saudi Arabia cancelled due to heat
The public screening of Spain’s World Cup match against Saudi Arabia in Madrid on Sunday has been cancelled because of extreme heat forecast for the Spanish capital, officials said.
The match, due to kick off at 6pm local time on Sunday, had been scheduled to be shown on a giant screen installed by the Spanish football federation (RFEF) at a fan zone in Plaza de Colón in central Madrid.
Madrid city council and the federation decided to cancel the screening after national weather agency AEMET issued an orange heat warning – the second-highest level – for the Madrid region, with temperatures forecast to reach 40C.
“The decision has been taken with the aim of protecting the health of attendees, event staff and support services involved in the event,” Madrid city hall said in a statement, apologising for any inconvenience.
Officials urged supporters to watch the match indoors in air-conditioned spaces and avoid prolonged exposure to the heat.
Large parts of Spain are experiencing unusually high temperatures for June as a mass of hot air from North Africa moves across the Iberian Peninsula.
A total of 13 of Spain’s 17 regions are on orange alert for heat on Sunday, while the northern Basque Country bordering France is on red alert, the highest level.
Authorities advised residents and visitors to take precautions during the heatwave, including drinking water regularly, staying in cool environments, limiting outdoor physical activity during the hottest hours of the day and taking extra care of vulnerable people. AFP
Can Saudi Arabia repeat the magic of 2022?
Argentina arrived in Qatar on a 36-game unbeaten run. When Lionel Messi opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 10 minutes, a comfortable afternoon seemed in the offing. Saleh al-Shehri and Salem al-Dawsari had other ideas, Argentina had three goals disallowed for offside in the space of 13 minutes and the greatest comeback in Saudi Arabia football history was made. Argentina went on to lift the trophy, while defeats to Poland and Mexico meant the Saudis did not reach the knock-out stage.
Unai Simon over David Raya is a controversial choice for De la Fuentes. The Arsenal keeper could lay claim to being Europe’s best this season.
“Those at the Champions League final had a few more days, so I got there on the Wednesday night,” Raya says. “I arrived a bit before Fabián [Ruiz]. I was saying hello to some of the others in reception when he arrived. I went to say congratulations; that was almost the first thing I did. I couldn’t really talk [to him] after the final; I just didn’t have it in me. The next day we talked about the game properly. Just two mates chatting … I was happy for him that he could lift the trophy for a second time.”
A high pressure game for the European champions, as Sid Lowe reports.
“If we had scored one, the game would have changed,” Martín Zubimendi said. Immediately after the game, De la Fuente had offered a simple analysis: when the ball doesn’t want to go in it doesn’t want to go in, he insisted. Spain had racked up 27 shots, after all. Ferran Torres had hit the bar and seen another clear opportunity saved. Vozinha, the 40-year-old goalkeeper who stopped that, saved six more and was named the man of the match. “There’s nothing to reproach the team for,” Rodri said. “We generated chances but couldn’t put it away; the good thing is they created almost nothing.”
We wait to see what role Lamine Yamal will play today. His coach would surely like to be able to use him.
The worst mistake we could make would be to compare him to anyone. He is the midst of a process. He has exceptional footballing maturity and lives it all with total naturalness. He has great serenity and strength. We have to let him follow his path but those players who have something different are ready for that. They’re geniuses, like Dalí [who] can paint a picture, or Michelangelo. They’re different. What is exceptional to us, isn’t to them. In those extremes, they feel comfortable. Why? Because they are different. What we think is exceptional, they consider normal.
Preamble
Spain’s campaign did not get off to a flying start, and Luis de la Fuentes may wake up in the night to visions of Cape Verde’s Vozinha. He will have Georgia on his mind ever since Monday. Saudi Arabia are no pushovers and gave Uruguay a scare in their opening match. Memories of downing Argentina four years ago still abound, and so Spain might beware. They can ill afford to go into the final game with Uruguay at a disadvantage. All eyes on Lamine Yamal, whose fitness situation remains opaque, though Spain need their other forwards to come to the party.
Kick-off 5pm UK, 1pm ET, 2am AEST. Join me.
A topless man can be seen driving erratically in Edinburgh before abandoning his car and attacking a black man and a delivery rider.
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