Andreeva turns pressure into Paris final berth
A season of mounting expectations tested the teenager before she converted her first major final berth with clarity and control against a resilient opponent on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva reached her first Grand Slam final by beating Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-1, 6-3 at the French Open on Thursday. She saved three break points at 0-40 in the opening service game then unleashed a flurry of inside-out forehands to race ahead 4-0. The eighth seed mixed heavy topspin crosscourt with occasional slice to disrupt rhythm on the slow clay.
Mindset shifts unlock deeper focus
She converted her first match point while serving for the match and later reflected on the clarity that emerged under that early strain. I just told myself, no matter what happens, I am going to fight and give my best. With this kind of mindset, I ended up winning. That approach carried through the second set even after the roof closed on Court Philippe Chatrier, altering the conditions mid-match.
Andreeva described seeing minute details on every ball during the contest, a sign of how the season-long pressure had sharpened rather than clouded her concentration. She had reached the semifinals two years earlier at the same event and now moved one step further while maintaining the same grounded routine in Paris. The 19-year-old noted the comfort of familiar surroundings and even practiced a few phrases of French during walks between matches.
Those small rituals helped offset the larger narrative that had followed her through the spring swing. Her ability to maintain tactical discipline revealed a player who had learned to treat each point as its own contest. She opened as a -482 favorite over the finalist on DraftKings odds yet absorbed the accumulated pressure of a season spent chasing deeper results.
Qualifier path echoes past title runs
Her opponent in the final will be Poland’s Maja Chwalinska, who became just the second qualifier to reach a Grand Slam singles final in the Open era when she beat Diana Shnaider of Russia 7-6 (4), 6-4 in Thursday’s later semifinal. Chwalinska sealed victory on her first match point with a powerful forehand winner down the line, then fell back with both hands on her face.
She sat on her chair and panted heavily, her face buried into a towel. I honestly don’t know what was going on in my head. I was just in such a shock. Chwalinska, 24, has a chance to match Emma Raducanu‘s title run at the 2021 US Open.
according to stats provider Opta, Chwalinska and Raducanu stand alone in having reached a major singles final from the qualifying rounds since the Open era began in 1968. The Pole admitted the moment felt unreal, echoing the bubble-like state that often accompanies sudden deep runs. Her 7-6 (4), 6-4 win completed a run that mirrored the 2021 US Open surprise in both structure and emotional weight.
Roof closure alters late momentum
The semifinal began at shortly after 3 p.m. with an open roof, like on Wednesday when beaten quarterfinalists Aryna Sabalenka and Anna Kalinskaya complained of swirling wind on Chatrier and said the roof should have been closed. It was closed toward the end of the second set of Thursday’s semifinal, offering better conditions for clay-court play.
Kostyuk broke back to trail 4-3 but dropped her next service game, and the comeback ended almost as quickly as it began, along with her 16-match winning streak on clay. Kostyuk and countrywoman Oleksandra Oliynykova have spoken out during the tournament about the impact Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is having on their country. There was no postmatch handshake between the two players on Court Philippe Chatrier, where some fans were draped in Ukrainian flags.
The atmosphere beforehand was somewhat tense as the players had separate photos taken as they each stood next to two children on their respective side of the net. No. 15-seeded Kostyuk said defeat won’t linger given how much support she felt from fans during her matches in Paris. I will never forget the ovations I received after my match in quarterfinals. This is something I will carry with me forever.
Andreeva said she could see even the smallest details on the ball. I was seeing the little hairs on the ball when I was tossing or playing [shots]. I was really, really focused today. She really likes to walk around the city, to go into those little restaurants on the street, and she also speaks a little bit of French, so she tries to sometimes talk to people in French.
Chwalinska feels like she is in a bubble and does not know what is going on. After the tournament it will be time to process it: breathe in, breathe out. Both finalists will carry distinct psychological arcs into Sunday, one shaped by steady progress at a favored venue and the other by the sudden lift of qualifying into the final weekend.