WATCH: Controversial scenes at French Open as Jasmine Paolini breaks up fight between fans after her kind gesture goes wrong

Jasmine Paolini has quickly turned into one of the most popular players on the tour since her breakout run and eventual rise to the top a year ago. However, she experienced an adverse effect of her popularity at the French Open 2025.

Paolini had a memorable run at last year's French Open, finishing as the runner-up in singles as well as doubles. She has been in fine form this year as well. She's through to the fourth round in singles, where she's up against Elina Svitolina. Along with her compatriot Sara Errani, the duo beat Yuan Yue and Lulu Sun 7-5, 6-2 in the second round of doubles on Saturday, May 31.

Players usually toss some of their belongings as memorabilia to fans once the match is over. Paolini did the same and tossed a towel to the fans. She then proceeded to sign autographs for the others. During this time, two fans got into a tussle, with each refusing to let go of the towel tossed by the Italian.

Paolini was still busy signing but couldn't ignore the drama any longer. She intervened and snatched the towel from the sparring fans and handed it over to another lucky fan. Here's a video of the entire episode:

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Paolini and Errani will next take on the 13th-seeded duo of Beatriz Haddad Maia and Laura Siegemund on Monday, June 2. However, her primary focus will be on her upcoming showdown against Svitolina on Sunday.

Jasmine Paolini and Elina Svitolina to fight for a spot in the French Open quarterfinals

Jasmine Paolini at the French Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

Jasmine Paolini will lock horns with former top 10 player Elina Svitolina in the fourth round of the French Open 2025 on Sunday, June 1. The Ukrainian has been playing some great tennis in recent weeks. She won the Open de Rouen, made it to the semifinals of the Madrid Open, and the quarterfinals of the Italian Open. She hasn't dropped a set en route to the fourth round in Paris.

Paolini has been on a roll herself. She captured the singles and doubles titles at the Italian Open before the start of the Roland Garros. She has continued her good run of form at the French Open as well.

This will be the second career meeting between them. They previously crossed paths in the third round of the Australian Open earlier this year. Svitolina rallied from a set down to win the match. Jasmine Paolini will be eager to avenge that loss. Given their current form, this will be another close contest between them.

About the author

Rohit is a journalist at Sportskeeda who specializes in covering tennis. Having been with the company for three years, he has proven himself as a formidable force in the field. With a Master's degree in law, Rohit brings his analytical and research skills to the forefront as a journalist. He stays on top of the game by using social media platforms and never misses a match for on-court insights. He values giving credit where it's due, keeping his reporting fair and accurate.

At the outset of his career, Rohit found his niche in writing previews and SEO pieces and it's this expertise that continues to define his role at Sportskeeda. He is particularly proud of one article that garnered an impressive 750k views and surpassed his "wildest dreams." Rohit is not particularly fond of (GOAT) debates and it is one of the reasons why he left the legal world behind. He prefers to view players in "tiers," where they're all esteemed to an extent. However, if pressed to name favorites, he would choose Serena and Venus Williams. The Williams sisters' journey from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of tennis has been his greatest source of inspiration.

When he isn't busy making spot-on predictions about match outcomes, Rohit likes reading, particularly fantasy, sci-fi, and comics. As an X-Men fanatic, he's also passionate about board games and enjoys watching movies in his spare time. And don't be surprised if you catch him silently wishing to the tennis gods for the removal of ad scoring from doubles.

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Edited by Rohit