Iga Swiatek will face Jasmine Paolini in the French Open final after a tearful Coco Gauff and teenager Mirra Andreeva were swept aside in the semi-finals.
Gauff wiped away tears at the start of the second set of her 6-2 6-4 loss to Swiatek after an argument with referee Aurélie Tourte over a controversial line call decision.
With her straight-sets victory, Swiatek extends her stunning career record against Gauff to 11 wins in 12 matches – the only loss coming at last year’s Cincinnati Masters. The world number 1 has now ended the American’s three-year streak in Paris, including the 2022 final and last year’s quarters.
An emotional Coco Gauff was beaten in straight sets by Iga Swiatek in their Roland-Garros semi-final
Gauff made 39 unforced errors in the match, which proved decisive, as the 20-year-old lost the first set 6-2 before briefly rallying in the second.
In the fourth game of the second set, Gauff returned a serve just as it was pulled, but Tourte overturned the decision and awarded the point to Swiatek.
An emotional Gauff was heard on court telling the referee: “You’re wrong… you should be ashamed. It’s a Grand Slam semi-final, know the rules of the game.”
Despite recovering to get a first break of serve, Gauff then lost the next four games in a row.
The US Open champion avoided two match points by stopping the rot to hold serve, forcing Swiatek to serve, but the two-time defending champion would do just that, claiming victory on her fourth match point to book her spot in a third consecutive Roland Garros final.
The 23-year-old Pole is aiming for a fifth Grand Slam title, a fourth victory in five years in Paris and hopes to become the first woman to triumph three times in a row at Roland Garros since Justine Hénin of 2007-09.
Andreeva, 17, swept away by Paolini
Mirra Andreeva won just four matches as the 17-year-old was swept in her semi-final.
In the second semi-final, 17-year-old rising star Andreeva suffered a crushing 6-3 6-1 defeat to 12th seed Jasmine Paolini, who advanced to a first Grand Slam final.
Andreeva, the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist since Martina Hingis at the US Open in 1997, failed to make the most of the few chances she was given in the match, accumulating too many unforced errors.
She had won her previous match against Paolini in Madrid in April, but the Italian used her powerful forehand to devastating effect to complete a convincing victory on the Philippe Chatrier court.
The 28-year-old is the first Italian player to reach the final on Parisian clay since doubles partner Sara Errani in 2012, and her emphatic victory came two days after compatriot Jannik Sinner reached the final four of the draw. male, guaranteeing he would be world number 1 next week.
Italian Jasmine Paolini qualifies for her first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros
“It was a difficult match,” Paolini said afterwards. “She’s playing amazing – only 17 and she’s so complete, so I was a little nervous before the match.
“I lost to her a month ago, so I said to myself ‘come on, you have to do better’. I was nervous in the first set but ball after ball I relaxed.
“Dreaming is the most important thing in sport and in life, so I’m happy that I was able to dream at this moment.”
Paolini is the complete package on clay
Mats Wilander, three-time Roland-Garros champion, on Eurosport
“Paolini’s forehand is absolutely brilliant and she takes the backhand early, hits it flat, so there are two different shots coming out of her racket. A heavy forehand with top spin and a flat backhand – very difficult to to play against.
“There is a big difference here between playing on any tournament court in Madrid or Rome.
“She’s complete on clay, but the only thing she lacks is the clean serve. But neither is Iga Swiatek, so it’s an interesting match we have in front of us.”
“Andreeva is going to be a top player”
“Tough for her,” Wilander said. “When you’re so young, at 17, you have so much hope but you haven’t been there yet, so you don’t know what the experience will be like and you don’t know what the consequences will be like.
“I think a few tears are a good thing. It just means she cares and I’m confident, with the help of Conchita Martinez, that Andreeva will be a top player in three, four, five coming years.”
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