NOTEBOOK | French Open

Benneteau in first quarterfinal: Julien Benneteau entered his fourth-round match against Alberto Martin Monday wondering if his left thigh injury would cause problems. As it turned out, Benneteau didn't have anything to worry about: He reached his first career Grand Slam quarterfinal when Martin stopped playing because of a bad back. Martin's back locked up while he was serving, trailing 3-1 in the first set, and he quit at 5-1. "Even now, even when I shook hands with him, and when I sat in the chair, I still don't believe it happened," said Benneteau, France's first man in the round of eight at Roland Garros since Sebastien Grosjean in 2002. "Quarterfinals, French Open -- I could not believe it. Incredible." His previous best at a major was a pair of third-round results, at the 2004 French Open and at this year's Australian Open. Now Benneteau will meet No. 4 Ivan Ljubicic, who beat Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo of Spain 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Benneteau also is into the doubles quarterfinals with countryman Nicolas Mahut, and they're scheduled to face top-seeded American twins Bob and Mike Bryan today.
Young Young: Before arriving in Paris last week, Donald Young was waking up at 5 a.m. back home in Atlanta to watch the French Open on TV. Jet lag hasn't been a problem for the 16-year-old, who breezed through his second-round match in the junior tournament against Chile's Ricardo Urzua-Rivera, winning 6-3, 6-1 Monday. "I'm doing better than I did last year," said Young, eliminated in second-round play here in 2005. "I just hope I can keep it up."
Associated Press
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