Paris (France) (AFP) - Key quotes from the ninth day of the French Open at Roland Garros on Sunday:

“I feel like I’m getting better and better with every match I play and overall I’m super happy with how I played today.”

– Aryna Sabalenka after producing an ominous display for her French Open rivals by blasting past Naomi Osaka.

“I’m really grateful for this opportunity. It’s such a beautiful court. You know, I took a picture during the warm-up of Rafa’s (Nadal’s) plaque. I was very excited.”

– Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska after continuing her remarkable run by beating Diane Parry on Court Philippe Chatrier.

“Amazing news, I’m super excited about it, I think it’s a great boost, even bigger boost for women’s tennis, whenever you have the greatest of all time, like back playing, I really thought when she walked off the court in New York, that was it, so this one really surprised me.”

– Former world number one Lindsay Davenport on Serena Williams’ return to tennis next week at Queen’s.

“She has a really cool personality. She’s fun, and she’s a legend. It’s inspiring to see, you know? I’m actually excited to see her play and probably face her, so it’s very cool. It’s very good news for tennis.”

– Current world number one Sabalenka on Serena.

“This (tennis) is the love of my life, I guess, otherwise I wouldn’t keep coming back after all the setbacks, the injuries.

“There were moments it was really tough to come back and hit a ball… But now I’m back and it’s thanks to them (his team), my character and my resilience.”

– Matteo Berrettini after reaching the quarter-finals in his first French Open since 2021.

“The match-ups are always interesting on both men and women, but you know, multiple factors for us to make the choice, as usual. As you know, the potential length of the matches is something that we are also looking (at).”

– Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo on scheduling a women’s match for the night session for the first time in three years.

“I don’t really care. I feel like there are so many different things for me to put pressure on myself. Like, that’s the last thing on my mind.”

– Osaka when asked if she felt more pressure to make it a “good match” playing in the night session.

“This year we’ll have surprises on both sides, and this is wonderful, as well. We can see a new generation coming up on men’s tennis and women’s tennis.”

– Mauresmo on a first week dominated by shock results, with new men’s and women’s champions to be crowned this weekend.

“I always look at you on the TV, so congrats for everything and I wish you the best for next season and the World Cup.”

– Italy’s Flavio Cobolli to Paris Saint-Germain players who paraded their Champions League trophy at Roland Garros, before sneaking in a photo opportunity.

“I don’t like to play with a team; only in Davis Cup. So I decided to quit with football…

“I played with many guys that now are doing pretty well, like (Riccardo) Calafiori, (Edoardo) Bove, (Nicola) Zalewski, (Matteo) Cancellieri. We were in the same team, and we have a good relationship. I mean, if I win a good match, they write me, and the same with them.”

– Cobolli when asked about his time in the Roma football academy.

“I actually struggled to pay for the hotel, because you guys know that we get the cheque after the tournament.”

– Chwalinska was not prepared to make it so far.