Iga Swiatek celebrates victory after the women's singles semifinal match between Coco Gauff of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
PARIS, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Poland's Iga Swiatek continued her bid for a fourth French Open title on Thursday with a comfortable victory over Coco Gauff of the United States to reach another final at Roland Garros, while Italy's Jasmine Paolini continued her surprising run here by beating Russia's Mirra Andreeva in the other semifinal.
World No. 1 Swiatek defeated US Open champion Gauff 6-2, 6-4 to extend her winning streak in Paris to 20 matches.
Swiatek has now won 11 of her 12 matches against Gauff, all in straight sets, and could become only the fourth woman to win four Roland Garros titles in the Open era - after Justine Henin, Chris Evert and Steffi Graf.
"I was consistent with my tactics, didn't overthink stuff and just went for it in the end," said Swiatek.
Paolini will be the unexpected challenger to Swiatek's crown on Saturday, after the 28-year-old swept past Andreeva 6-3, 6-1.
Paolini had never gone beyond the second round of a major before the start of this year, winning a total of four matches in 16 Grand Slams before advancing to the fourth round of the Australian Open in January.
"It's a great feeling to be in a Grand Slam final," the 12th seed said. "I don't know. It seems something impossible, but it's true."
Swiatek has 21 career singles titles, compared to two for Paolini. The top seed is 34-2 at Roland Garros and is seeking a fourth French Open coronation in five years.
"Iga is an unbelievable player," said Paolini. "My goal is to step on court on Saturday and try to enjoy the match and to enjoy that moment and to try to play a good match." ■
Mirra Andreeva returns a shot during the women's singles semifinal match between Jasmine Paolini of Italy and Mirra Andreeva of Russia at the French tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
Jasmine Paolini celebrates the victory after the women's singles semifinal match between Jasmine Paolini of Italy and Mirra Andreeva of Russia at the French tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
Jasmine Paolini returns a shot during the women's singles semifinal match between Jasmine Paolini of Italy and Mirra Andreeva of Russia at the French tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
Mirra Andreeva returns a shot during the women's singles semifinal match between Jasmine Paolini of Italy and Mirra Andreeva of Russia at the French tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
Iga Swiatek serves during the women's singles semifinal match between Coco Gauff of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)
Coco Gauff returns a shot during the women's singles semifinal match between Coco Gauff of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
Coco Gauff serves during the women's singles semifinal match between Coco Gauff of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)
Iga Swiatek returns a shot during the women's singles semifinal match between Coco Gauff of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, on June 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo)
