"I'm not any more scared of small spiders": The first week of the French Open, in quotes

The Break: French Open fashion review

As the first week of the French Open wound down, it was clear that for all the tournament’s compelling matches, it was is playing out exactly the way so many pundits predicted. The WTA draw is littered with upsets—only one of the Top 10 seeds, runaway No. 1 Iga Swiatek—survived to compete in the second week. On the ATP side, nine of the Top 10 seeds are in a position to move into the quarterfinals, led by familiar names: Djokovic, Nadal, Medvedev, Zverev, Tsitsipas, Alcaraz.

Before we get into what’s to come, here are some of the more interesting and revealing comments made during the first week:

I think Rafa at this place here—I just watched him practice. And it's funny because me, my dad and Sergi Bruguera watched him practice, and all of a sudden his forehand is just 20 miles an hour faster. He moves lighter on his feet. There is something about this court that makes him play 30 percent better, just being on this court. Alexander Zverev, before the start of play on Sunday. Put it down as tennis’s version of “there must be something in the water.”

Like, I used to be able to like say jokes and like not really care if anyone got it. Like I could reexplain the joke and whatever. I feel like the thing that's changed is like me trying to figure out the crowd. Like, I feel like I'm a standup comedian and I'm trying to figure out what's okay and what's not okay. Naomi Osaka, who was upset in the first round by Amanda Anisimova, on how “different” she feels 12 months removed from her withdrawal from the tournament before her second-round match last year. Her criticism of the press and battle with tournament officials became a crisis that triggered a universal dialogue on mental health in sports.

I give my 100 percent every day. I don't need these kinds of extra comments, because of course it doesn't help my confidence, either. I'm not a robot, you know. So these kinds of things I decide not to read anymore. I'm sorry if someone is tagging me on Twitter or Instagram, because I'm not seeing it. But jokes aside. Yeah, I think it was the first step to protect myself. No. 3 seed Paula Badosa, who came into Roland Garros with mixed results, saying she had been feeling too much pressure from critics, including the Spanish media and Internet trolls.

I think oftentimes people play what they really don't like [to see] somebody else doing it to them. So I just tried to choose really good moment and go for it, first of all, so she doesn't run so far back. Second, I just felt like she might not like it, as well, and it really worked. Magda Linette, on the heavy use of her dropshot during her sensational first-round upset of No. 6 seed Ons Jabeur, who had been playing great—and has been celebrated for her frequent use of the dropshot.

Well, it will be strange. I will be there [at Wimbledon] no matter what. Even this week I'm going to have some money, thanks to the first-round [win]. For the qualies, it's for sure we don't have a lot of money, but I still will play the qualies. . . It can be difficult on both sides of the controversy. I think we should have kept the points, but I will be there. I don't know who will not attend, because winning Wimbledon is still a piece of glory. It's wonderful. Gregoire Barrere, a French wild card ranked No. 210, on his plan to compete at Wimbledon even if rankings points are not available.

I mean, obviously in that semifinal I would have liked to have my chance at Wimbledon in a [fifth-set] tiebreaker. The sport has evolved in that sense, and I probably have a lot to do with it. John Isner, after his first-round win, on whether he wishes Wimbledon had embraced the fifth-set tiebreaker sooner. In 2010 Isner won the longest match—by far—in tennis history, 70-68 in the fifth set. But his 2018 semifinal loss to Kevin Anderson—just 26-24 in the fifth set—was the missed opportunity of his career.

Definitely math. I hated that. I'm so glad it's over. Yeah, and I know that it's something that you need every day. My dad is a math guy. He's like, ‘You need to be good at math,’ and I'm like, ‘Dad, listen, that's just something that I'm not going to do.’ There's a calculator for a reason and there's all these apps for a reason. Coco Gauff on her least favorite subject in school. (Her favorites, she said, were English and history.)

I mean, I don't know what happened. I don't know why. But I guess whatever I do is at some point booed, so that's how it is. That's life. yeah, I don't know why that happened. Defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, following her first-round loss to France’s Diane Parry. Krejcikova was booed upon returning to the court following a bathroom break after she lost the second set. Krejcikova had been sidelined since the Dubai tournament with an elbow injury.

Joe likes to think he's the best, but if we put some money on it, some decent money, he wouldn't be. Great Britain’s Dan Evans, responding to claims by fellow countryman Cam Norrie that Joe Salisbury is the best golfer in the friend group of British players.

I think you got to keep measures [standards], otherwise it's going to get crazy. I think we actually have it pretty good. I think in other sports if you say something to the refs you're out of the game. I know I'm a guy that gets fired up and needs to get better at controlling my emotions. So, yeah, I would disagree that something should change. I think it's already too loose. Denis Shapovalov, who was upset in round one, responding to Taylor Fritz’s suggestion tennis should relax its rules to make more room for expressive behavior in order to attract a younger audience.

In real life, you know, it's sometimes difficult to be intense. You don't want to shock, you don't want to be too rude, you don't want to hurt somebody. You always try to act to be, how I say that, to be nice, to be sociable. But, you know, on the court, you can express your fever. You can express everything about you, and it's sometimes. . .freeing, yeah, freeing. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, in the press conference following his first-round loss to Casper Ruud—the final match of Tsonga’s long and distinguished career.

You know, I'm sure for him it was an amazing atmosphere. . . But there is a line that, you know, when I'm getting told things by people in the crowd, making eye contact with me after I hit a double fault, I think there is a certain line that needs to be kind of looked at. I'd rather not get into what was being said. Australia’s Alex de Minaur, after losing to Frenchman Hugo Gaston in the first fifth-set tiebreaker at Roland Garros. The crowd was wildly partisan.

When you have to play like Pablo, you know that there are not many solutions because he's solid. He does everything well. It's not easy. You don't have something to cling to tactically. Physically, you know that he's going to be fitter than you. And that he's going to last longer. So when I entered the court, I didn't say, ‘Oh, I'm going to win in five sets at 1:30 a.m.’ But I did it. Gilles Simon, who plans to retire at the end of this year, after his late-night upset of Pablo Carreno Busta.

I mean, I think that if you ask me that, I think some parts of my tennis game have actually improved compared to last year. It's different when you are someone who may have a target on their back. Everyone raises their game, wants to play well, wants to beat you, take you out. Emma Raducanu, the defending US Open champion, after her second-round loss to No. 47 Aliaksandra Sasnovich.

I don't even realize what's happening. I know I'm 26. It's my first Grand Slam. I thought I would have lost in the first round in two sets, and I found myself beating a Top 10 player (Karolina Pliskova). So honestly, I have nothing else to say. I don't really know how it's possible, what's happening. I just try to give my best to play my tennis, and it's working so far. Leolia Jeanjean, once a highly touted junior who won two rounds despite being ranked No. 227. She missed two entire years of play due to a knee injury and attended college in the U.S.

And yeah, I'm a little bit scared of spiders, but I need to say I was much more scared when I was 10 or 12. I'm not any more scared of small spiders. I never saw a tarantula, so I think I'm going to be scared if I see one. When you grow up you need to sometimes face your fears. I think fear is one of the toughest emotions in people's life, because a lot of mistakes we do in life is because we are scared of something. Daniil Medvedev, the No. 2 seed, after his third-round win.

Well, it's an embarrassing moment for me, so I don't want to talk too much about it. I just want to apologize. My whole career I didn't do something like this, and I feel really bad and sorry. So I'm just going to say again, sorry for the incident and, yeah, it was just an embarrassing moment for me. Irina-Camelia Begu, after her second-round win over Ekaterina Alexandrov. During the third set, Begu hurled her racquet, it bounced off the chair, and it zoomed into the crowd. A boy cried in the stands and Begu went on to win. Ultimately, she was fined $10,000 by the French Tennis Federation, but Alexandrova was incensed that Begu was not defaulted due to the dangerous nature of the infraction, and the delay it caused.

I don't know anything about whether my visa is going to be reinstated or whether I'm going to be allowed to come back to Australia. I would like to. I would like to go there and play the Australian Open.I don't hold any grudges. Look, you know, it was what it was. Novak Djokovic, whose desire to play the Australian Open this year without meeting the country’s vaccination requirements created an international furor.

I know you guys gonna ask the question, but for me it's very simple. He's my uncle. I don't think he will be able to want me to lose, without a doubt, but he's a professional and he's with another player. I don't know what's gonna happen, if he's gonna stay in the box or not, but I don't care. I have zero problem with that. Rafael Nadal, on his uncle Toni Nadal, before Rafa’s fourth-round meeting with rapidly rising Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime. Toni, his nephew’s coach for most of Rafa’s career, has been coaching Auger-Aliassime.

I don't know [if I will return to Roland Garros next year]. Just on the spot it's very difficult to say. What is amazing is that people dared to boo me on the court when I had to abandon the match. And it was because I was in pain. France’s Alize Cornet, following her mid-match default to China’s Quinwen Zheng due to an abductor muscle injury sustained in the previous round. The 32-year-old lost the first nine games in front of the Parisian crowd and then retired.

I was actually quite anxious about today as I thought it might be Gilles’ last match, But then I asked him in the morning, is he saying good-bye here? He mentioned that he's going to keep playing until end of the year. So I was like, ‘Whew, okay, okay, I don't want to be last guy putting you into retirement.’ Marin Cilic, after he halted No. 128-ranked French veteran Gilles Simon’s inspired play in the third round.

She just seems like she's kind of hit another level than all of us right now. Yeah, it's a little scary. I think her athleticism is very off the charts. I think her defense is really, really, really good, kind of similar to like an Ash Barty, where they have offense and defense, they can get in the corners, dig out the points, play really good defense and then also take the racquet out of your hands sometimes. I think she's gotten much more offensive this year, been more aggressive when she's needed to be. Jessica Pegula, after her third-round win, giving her opinion to reporters on why world No. 1 Iga Swiatek has been so tough.

I would say that I'm aggressive all the time. It doesn't matter that if I am losing, winning, tough moments, tough matches, I keep my style the whole match. I would say that that's the difference, I don't know. Carlos Alcaraz, when asked after his third-round win what he feels distinguishes his game and makes him different from most of his rivals.