"Just hand the trophy to Iga Swiatek & cancel the tournament" - Fans in disbelief over Aryna Sabalenka & Elena Rybakina's shock French Open QF losses

With the exciting prospect of all four top seeds reaching the semifinals of the 2024 French Open on the verge of becoming reality, tennis fans were left in disbelief when Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina both bowed out of the claycourt Major in the quarterfinals.

On the other side of the draw, two-time defending champion Iga Swiatek and third seed Coco Gauff set up a blockbuster semifinal clash, gearing up to battle it out for a place in the final.

With anticipation running high for the other two top seeds to join them, fourth seed Rybakina took on Jasmine Paolini in the quarterfinals. Despite her valiant effort to secure a comeback win, the Kazakh appeared far from her best as she tallied 48 unforced errors. The Italian, meanwhile, held her nerve to secure a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 victory, reaching her maiden Grand Slam semifinal.

Aryna Sabalenka then took the court against 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva, narrowly edging past the Russian to clinch the first set in a tiebreak. However, Andreeva showcased remarkable resilience, rallying to claim a 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4 victory as the second seed struggled with health issues during the contest.

Tennis fans were astounded by Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka's shock losses, with several of them humorously remarking on how the predictions had fallen through.

"The semi we all expected...," one fan commented.

"SF Paolini vs Andreeva.. Just as we all predicted right....," another fan wrote.

"Damn, women’s bottom half of the draw got annihilated today," said another.

Given Iga Swiatek's dominance at the French Open, her 10-1 winning record against Coco Gauff, coupled with the relative inexperience of Paolini and Andreeva, several fans declared the Pole's third consecutive Roland Garros triumph a foregone conclusion.

"Well... Congratulations Swiatek on winning RG," one fan posted.

"Just hand the trophy over to Iga now and cancel the tournament on the women’s side," another fan chimed in.

"Just give the trophy to Swiatek now," said yet another.

Others simply expressed their regret over Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina's defeats, lamenting the missed opportunity to have the top four women's seeds battle it out in the semifinals.

"Awhhh man we were this close 🤏 to having the top 4 women’s seeds facing each other in the semis," a fan commented.

"I swear we'll never get a WTA Slam with all the top seeds making it to the end for one reason or another(Ryba sick last RG and choked this RG Saba the other way around) I'm really disappointed lol," another fan posted.

"Upsets get a lot less special when they happen every single time and you get horrible finals like Saba vs. Zheng at the AO or Iga vs. whoever this time at RG. It's like when Rafa and Novak played Kevin Anderson in Slam finals," the fan commented further.

Aryna Sabalenka skips press conference after French Open QF loss due to illness; Elena Rybakina acknowledges "struggle" with health issues

Following her unexpected defeat to Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinals of the French Open, Aryna Sabalenka opted to skip her press conference as she received treatment for an illness.

Elena Rybakina, meanwhile, opened up about the toll her recent struggles with health issues had taken on her, admitting that she had a "bad day" on the court.

"It was bad day. As I was saying, I was struggling a little bit with the health issues past few weeks, so I think it’s just all together," she said in her post-match press conference.

Nevertheless, the Kazakh found solace in her quarterfinal finish at the claycourt Major, acknowledging her campaign as "positive."

"But in the end no matter all these things, which were maybe happening outside of the court, I managed to get to the quarters. I think it’s pretty good result. Of course, I always want to win, but a lot of tough opponents, a lot of matches, and I think overall it’s been positive French Open for me," she added.