Roland-Garros: Swiatek defeats Gauff and will face Paolini in the final

Iga Swiatek qualified for her third consecutive final at Roland Garros by defeating American Coco Gauff. The Pole, world No. 1, took 1 hour and 37 minutes to win 6-2, 6-4. In the final, she will face Italian Jasmine Paolini, who beat Russian Mirra Andreeva 6-3 6-1.

From the start of the match, the Pole, who had 17 consecutive successes on the circuit, put pressure on the American whom she had beaten 10 times in 11 confrontations to take the break in the first game. And even if Gauff s was offered a ball to equalize, she seemed to force too much to keep up the pace, committing numerous unforced errors.

Once again in the 4th game the American will have a ball to catch up, canceled by a big mistake on the forehand. The confident Pole subsequently broke away 5-1, before concluding on her serve two games later on the 18th direct error from the Flushing Meadow champion.

Gauff led 3-1

The second set is more hooked. Coming back after an altercation with the referee while leading 2-1, Gauff made the break with a winning backhand acceleration to break away 3-1. But she was unable to maintain this pace and the Pole took the opportunity to line up five of the next 6 games and win on her 4th match point with a big forehand error from the American.

Already a winner in 2020, 2022 and 2023, Swiatek will try tomorrow to win her 4th title on Parisian clay, and the third in a row. A victory on Saturday would also give her her 5th Grand Slam title since she also triumphed at Flushing Meadow in 2022.

Italy in force in Paris

Roland Garros continues to vibrate in tune with Italy. After Jannik Sinner’s rise to world number one, Jasmine Paolini caused yet another sensation by knocking aside emerging star Mirra Andreeva to earn her place in the final. Beaten by the Russian last month in Madrid, the “little” Italian (1.63m) showed great lucidity and a lot of authority to defeat a particularly nervous Andreeva 6-3, 6-1 in 1 hour and 13 minutes.

Eleven years separate Andreeva (17 years old) from Paolini (28 years old), an age difference that has not been seen since the victory in 1985 of Chris Evert, 30 years old, over Gabriela Sabatini who was only 15 at the time. And even if the Italian is 15th in the world, for many, the Russian was the favorite as her enthusiasm and recklessness promise great things.

Andreeva seemed distraught

But from the outset, the Italian seemed the more serene of the two. Mobile, she distributed her punches well and made her opponent move, whose arm did not seem as loose as the day before against Sabalenka.

The Italian quickly offered herself a first break to come away 3-1. In the next game the Italian was there when 3 break balls had to be ruled out, and a few games later, she took the first set 6-3 in 41 minutes on a too long return from the Russian teenager, her 17th direct error.

The Russian seemed distraught. The more she tried to force her destiny, the more her arm seemed to tense while opposite Paolini seemed to gain confidence.

Paolini managed a first break in the 3rd game of the 2nd set, then another in the 5th game on another big backhand fault, from Andreeva who had tears in her eyes. Nothing was going to stop the negative spiral in which the Russian was trapped, and two games later, Paolini concluded a shutout with a winning crosscourt forehand. She could let her joy burst forth.

On Saturday, at the age of 28, she will play her first Grand Slam final against the big boss of the circuit, Iga Swiatek. And on Monday she will find herself at least 7th in the world.

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