Key events
First set: Boisson* 1-5 Gauff (*denotes next server)
Gauff has done such a good job of keeping the crowd quiet so far, but that’ll change very quickly if the score becomes closer. And the American will be very aware of that. That was what largely led to Andreeva’s and Pegula’s downfalls against the Frenchwoman. But the rain hammering on the roof is probably making more noise than the Parisian patrons right now. At 30-all, Boisson shows impressive athleticism to get to Gauff’s smash, but Gauff gets another chance at the overhead and makes no mistake. 40-30. Game.
First set: Boisson 1-4 Gauff* (*denotes next server)
Chris Evert notes on the commentary that Boisson is trying to keep the points as short as possible to avoid too many long rallies with Gauff. That’s mainly out of respect to her opponent, but she must also be feeling tired after her exploits this fortnight. But at 30-15, Boisson does come out on top in a prolonged exchange and she has game points on her serve for the first time in this match. And Boisson is on the board when Gauff nets a return!
First set: Boisson* 0-4 Gauff (*denotes next server)
… and when Gauff gets her own advantage, Boisson’s shot clips the net and trickles over! Deuce. Advantage Gauff. Jeu Gauff. Cue a collective sigh. But there were at least some green, or more accurately red, shoots on the court for Boisson with those break points. Can she build on those and get herself on the scoreboard?
Worryingly for Boisson, Gauff is such a good frontrunner – but Boisson rallied from behind in the quarter-finals, having trailed in the first set against Andreeva, saving two set points, and she was also down in the second. Boisson shows some fight to get to 15-30 on Gauff’s serve … and here’s the first deafening chant of “LOIS, LOIS, LOIS, LOIS, LOIS, LOIS” as Boisson grabs two points to get one of the breaks back at 15-40. Gauff saves the first break point with a forehand winner – Boisson concedes the second with a limp drop shot. But Boisson sets up a third break point with a blistering backhand cross-court winner! After a long exchange, Boisson’s lob lands long …
Gauff breaks: Boisson 0-3 Gauff* (*denotes next server)
The French crowd are cheering on Boisson, more in hope than belief, when she drops two break points down at 15-40. A second serve from Gauff down the T sets up the rally … and Gauff’s forehand down the line is too hot for Boisson to handle. Gauff has the double break after only 12 minutes.
First set: *Boisson 0-2 Gauff (*denotes next server)
Boisson has a different game to most on tour, with her heavy, top-spin forehand, which bounces up so high on the clay; her big serve and her kicker on the second; and her lovely sliced backhand; and her other weapon today, of course, is the crowd. She’s so fit and strong – she clearly did a lot of weights in the gym during her knee rehab – I, for one, wish I had those biceps. Boisson will need to target Gauff’s fallible forehand – because Gauff has just about everything else, including one of the best backhands in the business, superb athleticism and remarkable right. Already Boisson’s task is laid bare, as Gauff commandingly holds to 15, the only point for Boisson won when she sends Gauff from corner to corner.
Gauff breaks: Boisson 0-1 Gauff* (*denotes next server)
Mesdames et messieurs, Boisson will serve first. And Gauff immediately silences the crowd with a perfectly placed lob! The umpire’s only just got into his chair, but he’s out of it after the second point to check a call. He confirms Gauff’s shot was out. 15-all. The roof remains on for this match, which Boisson will be pleased about, as it’ll amplify the atmosphere. But I don’t think Gauff will let the crowd affect her in the way Andreeva did against Boisson yesterday. As if to prove this, Gauff ignores the excitement that greets a Boisson drop-shot winner to carve out a break point at 30-40. And another at her advantage. And she’s greeted by the sound of silence when she breaks!
Prediction time. Unsurprisingly, these two have never faced each other before, given Boisson had played only two matches on the main tour before this tournament. If Gauff is as hit and miss as she was yesterday against Keys, Boisson definitely has a chance. But Boisson is likely to be mentally and physically tired after her exploits this fortnight; it’s been the biggest two weeks of her life. And she’s back on court only 24 hours after her quarter-final win. I’m backing Gauff.
I loved Boisson’s comments after her win over Andreeva yesterday. It would be easy for her to dwell on what she’s already achieved – but she wants more. “I think every kid who plays tennis has the dream to win a grand slam,” she said. “ More for a French player to win Roland Garros, for sure. I will go for the dream, because my dream is to win it, not to be in the semi-final. So I will try to do my best for it.
“I don’t think it’s a miracle. I’ve had a little bit of luck, but I think it’s just the hard work that I put in since I started playing tennis and also last year with my rehab and everything. It’s the result of hard work. Nothing else.”
So many stats.
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Boisson had won just one (!) match on the WTA Tour before this tournament.
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She’s guaranteed to jump at least 300 places in the world rankings to about 65 for reaching the semi-finals – and will go further if she wins today.
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She’s gone from the French No 24 to No 1 in less than a fortnight
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She’s playing in semi-finals after beating three seeds, including two in the top 10, in Jessica Pegula and Mirra Andreeva.
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She’s the first French semi-finalist since Marion Bartoli in 2011.
And here they come, Boisson ahead of Gauff, as the crowd will hope it remains throughout. Boisson gets the far bigger cheer, pour le change. Gauff whips off her leather jacket for the coin toss, and the crowd are already going crazy. Just wait until Boisson wins her first point …
But Coco Gauff is the model of consistency in Paris. For the world No 2 this is her third semi-final in four years at Roland Garros. Having lost in the 2022 final, this time she’s come for the title. She has so much experience, it feels as if she’s 31 rather than 21. And the American knows how to win a slam, having done so at the US Open two years ago. Despite her inconsistent win over Madison Keys in the quarter-finals, she’s very much the favourite to halt this most unexpected of French revolutions.
It goes to show what a difference a year makes. Twelve months ago Swiatek had secured her third French Open title on the spin – now here she is pondering where she goes next. Meanwhile this time last year Lois Boisson was sitting at home, unable to bring herself to watch her home grand slam, having been prevented from taking up the wildcard she’d been offered after tearing her ACL a week before. And today, as the world No 361 and on her slam debut, she’s the first wildcard in the Open era to play in the French Open last four, the lowest-ranked slam semi-finalist in 40 years and only the third player since 1980 to reach the semi-final at her first major tournament after Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati. It really is one of the most incroyable and joyeux breakthroughs tennis has ever seen.
Merci beaucoup! Wow. Swiatek rarely loses a set at Roland Garros, let alone by a 6-0 scoreline. Sabalenka hit 0 unforced errors in that set. It’ll be fascinating to see how Swiatek recovers from this, now her aura is totally gone. Will she be like Borg? Or will she find a way to recover? Not only is the 24-year-old’s long French Open reign over, her run without a title will stretch to more than a year.
That, then is me – that’s the good news – and the better news is Katy’s here to bring you Loïs Boisson v Coco Gauff (2). Paix dehors et à demain!
Sabalenka is happy to be in the final but knows the job isn’t done yet. She’s “thrilled” by her performance and the atmosphere in the stadium, which “makes us feel amazing.”
Swiatek, she says, is the toughest opponent, especially on clay, and she’s proud to have won a “streaky match”. She’s glad she found her serve in the third set and you can’t get more perfect than a 6-0 set.
She doesn’t plan to watch the next semi today – her team will – then they’ll watch it together tomorrow. Otherwise, she jokes that she’s not sure she wants Boisson to win knowing how fervently the crowd support her, and off she toddles, into the Farench Open final for the first time in her career. It will not be the last.
I’m not totally sure what happened there. It’d be easy to say Sabalenka upped the power and Swiatek couldn’t cope, but that wouldn’t explain the champ’s inability to simply get balls into court 0 it was more of a collapse than a mauling. My guess is that after dominating the second set, she felt the match was on her racket, relaxed her focus just a little, and wasn’t able to regain it when her opponent improved.
Aryan Sabalenka (1) beats Iga Swiatek (5) 7-6(1) 4-6 6-0
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 6-0 Swiatek* Swiatek’s Roland Garros winning streak stands at 26 matches, frankly ludicrous behaviour. But sometimes, when it goes it goes quickly, and she’s soon down 15-30, Sabalenka’s hitting too much for her. Oooh and have a look, a forehand return bounces just inside the baseline, and the world no 1 has two match points! Swiatek’s first serve is called out, her second is almost apologetic, and quite rightly spanked back at her for a clean winner! IGA SWIATEK’S 26-GAME WINNING STREAK IS OVER! THERE WILL BE NO FOUR-PEAT, BUT THERE WILL BE A NEW CHAMPION!
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 5-0 Swiatek gosh, Swiatek is crumbling here, unable to hit a ball into court. On the one had, she’s seen it all before, but on the other, the stress of looking for a fourth title in a row must be extreme; I wonder if she relaxed after levelling the match, taking her head out of things, because Sabalenka isn’t blitzing her, she’s just doing normal stuff like hitting the ball inside the lines.
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 4-0 Swiatek* Down 0-15, Swiatek shanks a backhand way wide, and she’ll be feeling her fingers loosened, title being prised from her monomaniacal grasp. and when she goes long from the back, the match – and what a strange one it is – feels almost over. Shonuff, Swiatek again overhits, Sabalenka having taken 16 of 20 points played in this set, and a double break up, the match is hers to lose. One of the greatest existing runs in sport is on the brink!
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 3-0 Swiatek Two big first serves make 30-0 and another takes us to 40; this is terrific behaviour from the world no 1, once so weak in the clutch but now pretty nails. And though Swiatek makes 145, another first serve, backed up by a wrong-footing backhand winner, mean that she’s three games from the final.
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 2-0 Swiatek* Up 15-0, Swiatek is called for a double, the umpire checks the mark … and the call was correct, the ball wide. A longer rally follows, exactly what the champ wants – she’s won 20/27 of those lasting longer than five shots – and when she hares in to meet a drop, her response is too good. As we said earlier, it took her a while with the roof closes, but she’s managing to make this more of a clay-court match now, looking to break sidelines and make her opponent play an extra ball whenever possible. However, while I’m pontificating she loses two points in a row for 30-40, Sabalenka seizing control of the next one with a wrong-footing forehand that whistles over the net; Swiatek can only net in response and are we watching the decisive move being made?
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 1-0 Swiatek I’m surprised Sabalenka didn’t nip out between sets, just to reset, but she quickly gets us going again, making 30-0 when Swiatek can’t decide how to put away a ball that should go. Nevertheless we’re soon at 30-all, the champ sticking in a point that Sabalenka should finish, first picking the wrong side with a putaway, then playing a retrievable drop. No matter: a brilliant forehand winner is followed by a service winner, and that’s a huge hold secured.
Iga Swiatek wins the second set 6-4
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-6 Swiatek* Swiatek quickly makes 15-0, then wins a net exchange that Sabalenka ought really to have taken; the problem she has is that finesse isn’t her strongest point and Swiatek has quicker feet, eyes and hands. It’s soon 40-0, two booming forehands wrest control of the next rally, and she’s into the net to tap away a volley, thus completing a fine set (of tennis) from the three-time defending champ. Sabalenka needs to find something; simply playing better doesn’t sort this for her.
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 4-5 Swiatek Ooh yeah, now it’s Sabalenka disguising a drop. It gives her 40-15, a huge serve follows, and Swiatek will have to serve for a decider. She’s looked good in this set, but the pressure now is very different to the pressure previously.
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 3-5 Swiatek* At change of ends, Swiatek chides the umpire for being unfair – she won’t know that Hawkeye said the ball was out, which is a shame given the potential needle if she did. A terrific point from Sabalenka, finished at the net, then makes 15-all, but a good serve and clean-up forehand quickly restores Swiatek’s advantage. And from there, she serves it out in short order, momentum with her and Sabalenka now serving to stay in the set.
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 3-4 Swiatek Sabalenka perhaps needs to pull back on her power – she hits it hard enough without emptying the clip on everything. Anyhow she quickly makes 30-0, the umpire refusing to come and look at a mark and telling Swiatek she waited too long and to see if her return went in. The champ enjoys that as much as you’d imagine, then the love hold is quickly secured.
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 2-4 Swiatek* Of course, the problem with Swiatek looking to play with craft rather than power means she must necessarily go closer to lines, and she misses one to give Sabalenka 15-all. The champ, though, is serving and playing much better than in set one, a backhand winner down the line followed by an overhead emphatically dispatched to secure a colossal hold
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 2-3 Swiatek Swiatek is doing all she can to turn this into her kind of match. It took her a while, the closed roof not helping, but she’s now acclimatised and working angles, speeds and spins to keep her opponent moving and guessing. Sabalenka, though, secures a rare love hold, which’ll give her the confidence that’s been lacking so far in this set.
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 1-3 Swiatek* Down 0-15, Swiatek slaps down an ace, her first of the match, but Sabalenka immediately calls the umpire to check the mark and the ball was good, just. Then, at 30-15, a delicious drop at the net, punkt on the half-volley, raises two consolidation pints, and goodness me, another drop, this time from the back and painted wrong-footed, on the stretch, underlines which of the two is now feeling herself. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen Swiatek play a shot like that!
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 1-2 Swiatek Between games, Sabalenka stretches arms, not for the first time. Initially, I thought it was a mental thing, but she’s doing it so often I wonder if she’s got a problem; either way, she’s soon down 0-30, then wastes a forehand long and faces three break points. And the next rally proceeds just as the champ wants it to, Sabalenka sent to the corner and kept there before losing patience and butchering a backhand way wide.
Sabalenka 7-6(1) 1-1 Swiatek* This is a crucial game – Swiatek must force home her advantage. But at 30-all she serves into the middle of the box, no kick, then shanks a follow-up forehand wide, consults with her box as regards where to go next and misses her spot out wide. So she goes for it again, this time lands it, but then swipes a backhand wide and after all that effort to sneak a break, she meekly hands it straight back.
*Sabalenka 7-6(1) 0-1 Swiatek Swiatek takes a break and down 15-0, faced with a second serve rips a forehand winner down the line; neither respects the other in that department. Anyroad, while I’m looking up bike companies and colour charts, we land at 30-40, Sabalenka buggy-whipping a forehand like a ninja and howling like like Mad Murdoch as she gains deuce. Swiatek, though, backpedldles well to hit a backhand winner and she might doing a bit better at making this a clay-court match – she has to extend rallies and break sidelines. Which is how she secures the break, swinging a backhand return way out wide then cleaning up from half-court.
“That outfit Saba is sporting is deffo celeste, as made famous by the legendary bike company Bianchi,” advises Chris Collinson. Apparently Bianchi got a great deal on some celeste-coloured paint from the Italian Armed Forces back in the day, and now it’s synonymous with the company).”
Aryna Sabalenka takes the first set
Sabalenka 7-6(1) Swiatek Chance for Swiatek to get back into the breaker with a winner but offered a nicely bouncing ball and a lot of space, she goes long, offering Sabalenka five set points. And she only needs one, another overhit ball finally ending a set that looked over 50 minutes ago.
Sabalenka 6-6 Swiatek (5-1) Whoever loses this breaker will feel extremely poorly, Sabalenka having led through the set and been unable to serve it out and Swiatek after working like mad to come back. But it’s an immediate mini-break for the former then, at the net and lost in the supermarket, a tentative push wide means a second, then an ace takes her to within two points of it.
*Sabalenka 6-6 Swiatek A decent return helps Swiatek to 0-15 and in comms, Lindsay notes that, with the roof closed, no one would’ve expected five breaks of serve in 11 games. I guess conditions are helpful for returning too, allowing both players to rely on their shot-making and, as I type, Sabalenka unloads the suitcase at one only to drop long. She does, though, soon make 30-all, only for a weak serve to invite the forehand winner cross-court; Swiatek duly delivers. And though, on break-back point, Sabalenka finds a much better delivery, backed up with a forehand, she’s soon advantage down, and a poor backhand flies long and plenty. That’s six breaks in 12 games, and here comes a first-set tiebreak.
Sabalenka 6-5 Swiatek* Oh I say! Up 0-15, Sabalenka is sent to the forehand corner and, on the run, stretches to bend a glorious winner just inside the sideline. Then at 15-30, she steps back a little to return and lands a decent one which facilitates a looping forehand, enough to raise two break points … and she only needs one, clobbering a forehand return that’s too good. All that hard work, and after losing seven points out of eight, Swiatek must still break to stay in the set.
*Sabalenka 5-5 Swiatek There’s pressure here, Sabalenka in danger of losing a set she’s dominated. But she rides it well, holding to love, and this is on a rolling boil now, both players completely obsessed with the situation – in different ways but nevertheless.
Sabalenka 4-5 Swiatek* If Swiatek can somehow manufacture a quick hold here, Sabalenka would be under all sorts when serving to stay in the set. But a backhand winner shrieking down the line makes 15-all and it’s soon 15-30; no matter. Swiatek opens shoulders on the backhand, wiping one to the forehand corner, and Sabalenka slips in the process of getting it back, allowing a simple putaway into an empty court. Swiatek, though, doesn’t take it, spanking a backhand as though her opponent is still in the point; her focus is almost terrifying. Meantime, the crowd chant her name so when, at 40-30, another Sabalenka winner raises deuce, the world no 1 noises them up further; she far more eager to be loved than Iga herself. Swiatek then sends her out of court again in making advantage, finding it easier to execute her gameplan now she’s used to the power, and a point later the champ leads for the first time. Sabalenka will now serve to stay in set one.
*Sabalenka 4-4 Swiatek A double opens the game, then a thrashed backhand long and up goes the pressure. Sabalenka, though, is much more solid than she once was and a serve out wide is backed up with a top-spin forehand into the corner that’s just been vacated. And it’s soon 30-all, Sabalenka hammering a backhand winner … only to go long again, handing over a break-back point. The first serve is long and, knowing Swiatek is primed to attack, she goes for too much! Another double, a big double too, and we’re back on serve, Sabalenka roaring at her box. Not that long ago, she thought she’d made 5-1; did that late net-cord call change everything?
Sabalenka 4-3 Swiatek* Much better from Swiatek, who makes 40-15 and looks good in the process. But a backhand winner, monstered down the line, makes things close … only for Sabalenka to then net the same shot. The champ is adjusting and is into the match.
“I don’t know if you got the chance to see Serena live,” writes Kerrith Britland, “but if so, how do Saba’s and Serena’s games compare in terms of raw power? Also why is tennis commentating so far behind in terms of technical insight? It’s pretty damning that Kyrgios did a better job than most of the full timers. LET’S GO, IGA!”
I’ve seen Serena live but not Sabalenka; I don’t though, think it’s especially close. Serena, though, was much better rounded with a more natural tennis brain and hands.
As for the commentary, I wonder if tennis is lagging behind because it’s mainly speaking to a part-time audience that mainly watches the majors, so is satisfied with glib cliche.
*Sabalenka 4-2 Swiatek I said earlier we were getting Chrissy on comms but she must be doing it for US telly, as we’ve got Lindsay Davenport; hopefully she does the second semi, which will delight Katy who’s on it for us. Aha! Down 30-15, Swiatek plays exactly the kind of shot she needs to, breaking the sideline to get Sabalenka out of court before tidying up – she needs to do much more of that, because straight balls will be gobbled up. Nevertheless it’s soon 40-30, whereupon an apparent ace looks set to have sealed the hold, but a late let call sends Sabalenka back to her mark – she loves it just as much as you’d expect – all the more so when she frames a forehand for deuce. Seconds later, it’s advantage and the umpire must be fearing a volley at change of ends, but the break point is saved, then Swiatek devastates a second serve when facing advantage herself. This is much more like it from the champ, and after securing the break with a forehand winner she’s quickly at her team in aggressive fashion; perhaps one of them can come down and serve for her?
*Sabalenka 4-1 Swiatek Sabalenka is tucking into Swiatek’s serve like it’s a tasty insult, quickly making 0-40, her hollering reverberating under the roof long after the ball has departed. Swiatek does find a winner of her own for 15-40, but seconds later the double break is restored. If Swiatek can’t find a way of changing her delivery – sending balls to the body, perhaps – she cannot win this match.
“Even bigger French grammar nerd here, brags Joel Fine. “Since the adjective was describing two matches, it should be ‘suffisants’. Back to the tennis now…”
But why?
Aha, then I return to my inbox to find Louis has returned, queue entre les jambes. “Actually, you want “suffisants” as we were talking about a couple games here… I can’t even get my pedantic behaviour right myself.”
Peace has broken out.
*Sabalenka 3-1 Swiatek What colour are we calling Saba’s rig? I’m going for cyan. Successive forehand winners from Swiatek – she has five now, versus three for Sabalenka– make 30-all, and it’s soon 30-40. But offered the chance to finish the game, the champ hits a backhand when another forehand would’ve done and swats wide; to deuce we go. On that winners stat, by the way, it tells us how controlled Sabalenka is: rather than go for lines, she’s hitting balls that can be reached but not returned, or returned to offer simple putaways. Three years ago, she’d have had double the winners but double the unforced errors, so of course as I type, advantage down, she smites a forehand off the back foot, but Swiatek is emerging into the match nevertheless. And this time, offered the chance to thwack a return, she hooks it, with perhaps a bit of frame, on to the sideline. She’s on the board.
Sabalenka 3-0 Swiatek* The closed roof is helping Sabalenka, and she nails a return for 0-15 … then another for 0-30, Swiatek’s serve sitting up right in her forehand’s swing-zone; not since Baltimore has anyone been so concerned for the safety of Fuzzy Dunlop. Anyhow, another vicious return, backhand cross-court, makes 15-40 when Swiatek can’t get it back, and though she saves the first break point, she then sends a forehand long, and that’s the double break! After losing the first set of her quarter to Rybakina by a score of 6-1, the champ had a rethink; she might want to start along that path here, too.
*Sabalenka 2-0 Swiatek In fairness, I’m still surprised by Sabalenka’s power and I’m 212.98 miles away; in 42 years of watching tennis, I’ve never seen anything remotely like it. And after Swiatek makes 0-15, Sabalenka muscles her way to 30-15, despite failing to land a first serve – she’s not happy with the situation – then slams down an ace, before finishing the game at the net, putting away a backhand with exhibition violence. There’s a long way to go, but the match looks to be on her racket.
Sabalenka 1-0 Swiatek* (*denotes server) Swiatek is so methodical in her work, particularly when serving, and her first delivery makes 15-0. But two booming returns, full of length, rush her, and at 15-30, Sabalenka again unloads, her forehands too hot; Swiatek pushes wide and must now face two break points. A double follows, and that’s a poor start from the champ, who somehow seemed surprised by the power coming at her from the other side of the net.
Swiatek to serve, ready … play.
Email! “‘but when they’re as good as the two soon to get under way, they’re more than suffisamment,’” begins Louis Daillencourt. “You want ‘suffisant’; ‘Suffisamment” means ‘sufficiently’. No hard feelings – just a big ol’ French grammar N over here.”
None at all, I actually wondered if it was the correct usage and assumed someone’d set me Google translate straight. De tout, façon j’aime fair la spéléologie. Prendre la première route à droite.
And now Sabalenka; she, as you might imagine, looks far more chill.
Swiatek is ready; Swiatek is always ready, and here she comes.
The roof of Chatrier is closed. I’d have backed Swiatek to cope better with wind and cold, but a still atmosphere makes it easier for Sabalenka to unleash and control her power. So, given that’s harder to achieve from out wide and on the move, the onus is on the champ to prevent her planting her feet.
In her pre-match press conference, Sabalenka said that she and Swiatek performed a TikTok together at the WTA finals – at her behest – and since then, have been on the road to becoming friends. They’re not there yet, but they do sometimes practise together now and though I doubt they ever lose the frisson entirely it’s also nice that they’re getting on.
On which point, we were talking about Chrissy a moment ago, and her friendship with Martina is so profound and genuine as to be moving. If yiou’ve not seen the 30 for 30 on the subject, please do so urgently.
Until that point, though, I’m going for a Swiatek v Boisson final. The former will, I think, have too much variety and dexterity for Sabalenka; she expects to win, she’s playing well enough, and he understanding of angles should keep the world no 1 on the move.
Boisson, meanwhile, has the advantage of surprise and momentum. Moreover, Gauff isn’t playing all that well, and I don’t trust her forehand under the pressure it’s likely to face this afternoon.
Ahhhh, Chris Evert is in the TNT studio, and the great news is she’ll be co-commentating for us. As it goes, tennis is miles behind most other sports in explaining the technical subtleties and so on, but Chrissie is wonderful and I can’t wait for her to tell me what to think.
Preamble
Salut à tout le monde et bienvenue à Roland-Garros 2025 – 12ème jour!
Et quelle journee nous attend! Yes, it’s true we’ve only two singles matches, a reality tinged with sadness – the tournament is nearly over – but when they’re as good as the two soon to get under way, they’re more than suffisamment.
First up, Iga Swiatek, the three-time defending champion, continues her bid for the first four-peat in the women’s game. Though she’s had a difficult year, she’s settled right back in at her home from home and the way she’s been playing, it’ll take something significant to stop her.
But Aryna Sabalenka, her opponent this afternoon, is that and plenty, a bristling, bouncing obelisk of cartoonish power and creativity. Though clay is not a natural a surface for her – she doesn’t move as well as Swiatek – she is more than capable of overriding that disadvantage. Mike Tyson famously said that “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth,” and a match against Sabalenka is the tennis equivalent of climbing into the ring with him on the other side.
And if that wasn’t enough, following them on to court are Coco Gauff and Loïs Boisson – the first wild card to reach the semis in the open era. Gauff has somehow been around for 30 years despite being only 21, her athleticism, temperament and backhand giving her a decent shot of adding to the one grand slam title she’s won so far.
But to prevail here, she’ll need to play much, much better than she did yesterday, her match with Madison Keys setting a new mark for the gap between level of players and standard of play. Moreover, in Boisson, she faces an all-round talent, apparently fully formed, and fully absorbed in the joyous in the process of announcing itself to the world – in front of a home crowd. She will feel like she can’t lose – and the same goes for us. On y va!
Play: 2pm BST
