2024 French Open: Women’s finals Preview

On Saturday, Iga Swiatek and Jasmine Paolini will collide in the French Open final. Swiatek will have an opportunity to etch herself into the history books for becoming one of the players to win three consecutive French Open titles. But on her way, there is Paolini – a new kid on the block that making waves this year. The Italian is taking part in her first Grand Slam and would want to leave the mark. The tennis fans will be entertained with the blockbuster clash in Paris. 

For two weeks, Iga Swiatek has been playing fabulous tennis in the French Open. The world no 1 is yet to get an opponent matching her. All the matches she has played in the tournament have demolished the opponent. In the semi-final round against Coco Gauff, the experts and tennis fanatics predicted that she might have struggled against the talented American youngster but that wasn’t the case. She came victorious in a dominant fashion recording a 6-2, 6-4 victory to book another French Open final.

Like last year, both players met in the Quarter-finals round with Swiatek winning in the straight set. It was a frustrating defeat for Gauff as she was fighting with the umpires on the day and some of the decisions didn’t go her way. She has now extended a record to 11-1 in terms of victories over Gauff. Nevertheless, Swiatek was on top of her game with a quality tennis display. She booked a third consecutive French Open final and fourth in the last five years. Now the 23-year-old Polish international is starting to dominate more on clay surface and continue to write the history books. On her way to the final, she has yet to drop the set and has never been broken throughout.

On Saturday, she will attempt to be the third lady in the Open Era to win three consecutive French Open titles. Only Justine Henin and Monica Seles have achieved that feat in the past. Before arriving in the tournament, she had already shown class in clay surfaces this season winning the Rome and Madrid Open titles. Plus, she is riding on an 18-match unbeaten streak on the surface, equalling her longest on clay from 2022. Swiatek will face Jasmine Paolini in the final. Paolini is relatively new on the Grand Slam stage as she is going to play her first major final.

The 28-year-old Italian ace, who is seeded 12th, destroyed the qualifier Mira Andreeva 6-3, 6-1 in the semi-finals to make it to the biggest game of her career. She is a late bloomer as in the past she has not gone through past the fourth round of the Grand Slam. Now she has become the third Italian woman to reach the French Open final – only Sara Errani and Francesca Schiavone have managed to do that in the past. But it has been a year to remember for Paolini as she claimed her first Masters winning Dubai 1000 title. So, she is continuing to be in great shape and pulling some wonderful performances this season. 

Now the biggest test lies ahead as she must be at her best to come close to winning a first major against the best player in the world. Paolini has shown aggression accompanied by a lot of speed in her game. She puts excessive energy into putting the opponent under immense pressure and has a big power serve. If all those skills she has shown throughout the tournament she can be able to apply in the final might stand a chance to get a result against Swiatek. But the question remains if she is prepared enough to hold the nerves of playing the first final. Plus, on the day, the crowd will be not on her side which are other things she must keep in mind. So, a match will not be determined by the tennis she plays but also by the mentality she comes with on the court.