Aryna Sabalenka has qualified for the final of Roland Garros for the first time at the expense of Iga Swiatek. For Swiatek, who won the past three editions, a streak of 26 victories in Paris came to an end.
The duel was between the number one in the world (Sabalenka) and the player who has been unbeatable at Roland Garros in recent years (Swiatek). For this reason, the semi-final between the figureheads of women’s tennis was eagerly awaited in recent days.
Sabalenka got off to the best start on the Court Philippe Chatrier and quickly took a 3-0 lead. Yet the first set was still exciting and it turned into a tiebreak. In it, Swiatek made a striking number of unnecessary mistakes. The Polish player only took one point.
In the second set, Swiatek recovered well, resulting in a decisive set. In it, Sabalenka showed why she is currently leading the world rankings. With her characteristic power tennis, she didn’t give the number five in the world a single game, so the long, exciting match ended with an anticlimax. The one-sided third set lasted only 22 minutes.
Swiatek and Sabalenka had faced each other twelve times before. Swiatek was the strongest eight times. On the clay of Roland Garros, Swiatek had only suffered two defeats.
Final against Gauff or Boisson
“She is the toughest opponent for me on this surface,” Sabalenka said in the interview on the court. “I am so happy that I won against her. But my work is not done here yet. I also want to win this tournament.”
Sabalenka will face the winner of the match between American Coco Gauff and home player Lois Boisson in the final on Saturday. Gauff is seeded second, Boisson received a wildcard from the organization.