361st-ranked Frenchwoman Boisson upsets No 3 Pegula

PARIS — Lois Boisson never had played at the French Open, let alone in the biggest arena at Roland-Garros. Nothing fazed the French wild-card entry and now she is in the quarterfinals.

Boisson, ranked just 361st, threw her head back and roared after beating No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Court Philippe-Chatrier in the fourth round Monday.

She is by far the lowest-ranked woman to beat someone ranked in the top five at the French Open in 40 years. The lowest previously in that span was No. 179 Aniko Kapros, who eliminated No. 5 Justine Henin in the first round in 2002.

Boisson also is the lowest-ranked woman to reach the quarterfinals at Roland-Garros since at least 1985.

Quite a victory, considering Pegula was the U.S. Open runner-up last year. Understandably, Boisson was nervous as she served for the match and saved three break points.

After Pegula missed an easy-looking winner at the net and clutched her head in her hands, Boisson had her first match point, the biggest point of her career.

Pegula returned a strong serve to the back of the court, where Boisson unleashed a forehand winner down the line. She then raised her arms and realized the enormity of her win.

"Thank you to all of you," Boisson told the crowd in her post-match interview. "Playing on this court with such an atmosphere was really incredible." Boisson made the notoriously hard-to-please crowd laugh when she added: "I'm really happy on here. I can stay a long time if you like." The crowd broke into chants of "Lois! Lois!" and she waved back to them.

She is the only French singles player left in either bracket and feels comfortable on clay, having played on it regularly since taking up tennis when she was 8.

Asked what her ambitions were for the rest of the tournament — she plays sixth-seeded Mirra Andreeva on Wednesday in the quarterfinals — Boisson replied, "I hope to win, right?" That prompted more laughter from the crowd, which included tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, who has been criticized for the lack of women's matches during night sessions.

Agencies