Diane Parry broke through a persistent Grand Slam ceiling on Saturday, 31 May, defeating No. 6 seed Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 in 2 hours 44 minutes to reach the fourth round of a Major for the first time in her career. The match, played on Court Philippe-Chatrier at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, ended in a dominant 10-3 tiebreak that silenced any doubt about the outcome.

The Breakthrough Moment

Parry had reached the third round of a Grand Slam on five previous occasions without ever advancing further. On Saturday, with a partisan Parisian crowd roaring behind her, she finally cleared that hurdle. The third set was a tense, high-quality affair — both players traded breaks, with Parry moving ahead 4-3 only for Anisimova to level immediately. The tiebreak, however, belonged entirely to the Frenchwoman.

The win was Parry's second career victory over a top-10 opponent and ended a seven-match losing streak against that bracket. It also brought her tally of main-draw wins at Roland-Garros to eight — her highest at any Grand Slam.

Parry's Own Words

'I think I just believed like all the matches I could win and go take it even in three sets,' Parry told reporters after the match. 'I was feeling good physically. I felt like my game was disturbing her in some ways, so I was just trying to stay with this in my head and be able to go and take it in the end.'

Parry, now the last French player remaining in the women's singles draw, has recently added a two-handed backhand to her arsenal — a work in progress she is still calibrating match by match. 'It's not a set shot for me yet. I have to adapt, depending on the player and the conditions,' she explained.

What's Next for Parry

In the fourth round, Parry faces unseeded Polish player Maja Chwalińska, who upset former world No. 3 Maria Sakkari in another three-set battle on the same day. A deep home run at Roland-Garros would electrify French tennis fans, who have been starved of a deep women's singles run at their own Slam.

Anisimova's Setback

For Anisimova, the defeat marked her first third-round exit at a Grand Slam since Roland-Garros 2020, when she lost to Simona Halep. Between that result and Saturday, she had strung together eight consecutive third-round wins at majors — a remarkable streak now broken. The American had entered the clay season undercooked, having withdrawn from both Madrid and Rome due to a wrist injury.

Anisimova offered a measured assessment after the loss: 'I feel okay physically. Kind of hard to assess. I feel like I, even considering everything, could have played better, so I'm pretty disappointed. My wrist feels not so bad after a few matches, so that's a positive for sure.'

With Parry advancing and Chwalińska lying in wait, the bottom half of the women's draw at Roland-Garros 2025 is shaping up to be wide open.