THERE was a disparity between the sexes when the respective quarter final line-ups were finalised at Roland Garros.

While the organisers of the men's competition could hardly have hand-picked their line-up more efficiently - all eight of the remaining players are Grand Slam finalists, with five of them previous winners, sharing 42 major titles between them - a day of shocks left the women's field decimated, with reigning champion and No 2 seed Maria Sharapova and two-time Grand Slam winner No 4 Petra Kvitova heading the list of the day's fallers.

The eight female players who remain share 20 Grand Slam titles between them. Some might deem it unfortunate that Serena Williams has 19 of them. She certainly won't.

Alison van Uytvanck, the World No 93 from Belgium, had never previously progressed beyond the second round at any Grand Slam. Elina Svitolina of Ukraine - Jamie Murray's mixed doubles partner here - and Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland - a 2-6, 6-0, 6-3 victor against two-time slam winner Kvitova - hadn't made it past round three.

Lucie Safarova, a 7-6 (3), 6-4 winner against Sharapova on Philippe Chatrier yesterday, is a talented Czech player but she is also a 28-year-old who has nonetheless ever only ever only achieved one thing of note in the slams, last year's SW19 semi-final. She now takes on Garbine Muguruza, the young Spaniard whose high watermark was a quarter final here last year.

That leaves the other two establishment candidates as Sara Errani, a defeated finalist here in 2012, who now takes on Williams in the quarter final, and No 7 seed Ana Ivanovic, the 2008 winner who suddenly finds herself second favourite after six years in the Grand Slam wilderness. Go figure.

Sharapova afterwards refused to stress the illness which has dogged her at this tournament. "My opponent was at a much higher level more consistently than I was, and that results in a bad day at the office," she said, while even Williams had to come from behind for the third round in a row after a ghastly start which saw her lose the opening set 6-1 to her countrywoman Sloane Stephens. She made light of the elbow injury which has been dogging her. "Its' not how you start, it is how you finish," said Williams. "I feel like I'm living on the edge. But you know I've got to get off the edge."

Meanwhile, in the men's event, the countdown can begin in earnest to the quarter final match-up of the century. Rafa Nadal surrendered the first set in his pursuit of La Decima to young American Jack Sock in the course of a 6-3, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 victory, while Novak Djokovic, chasing his first French Open title, moved effortlessly onwards, courtesy of a 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 triumph against home favourite Richard Gasquet. "It is the toughest quarter final in my career here in Roland Garros, without a doubt," Nadal said. "But it is not the final, you know. It is a quarter final. The winner of that match will not be Roland Garros champion. He will be a semi-finalist. That makes a big difference."

Resuming the day at one set all, Roger Federer made light work of Gael Monfils, the score ending 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1. He faces his countryman Stan Wawrinka on Tuesday, with the prospect of the comparatively inexperienced Kei Nishikori or Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to come in the semi-final.

Meanwhile, Scotland's Maia Lumsden and her partner Anastasia Gasanova were 7-6 (5), 6-0 winners in their first round girls' doubles tie against Thaisa Pedretti and Alexandra Sanford.