Andreeva soars past Chwalinska for French glory
Mirra Andreeva became the youngest French Open champion in more than three decades as she swept aside surprise finalist Maja Chwalinska 6-3 6-2 on a blustery Court Philippe Chatrier, where the Pole seemed frozen by the magnitude of the occasion.
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The 19-year-old Russian, the youngest Roland Garros women’s singles winner since Monica Seles won her third straight title in 1992 aged 18, overcame a jittery start to claim her maiden grand slam crown, growing in authority as the match wore on while Chwalinska struggled to settle on the big stage.
The world No.114, who will rise to No.21 in the world rankings, had captivated Roland Garros with her tactical intelligence and fearless variety in a nine-match winning run that began in qualifying but the magic deserted her in the final despite the support of hundreds of Polish fans.
On a court that suddenly seemed vast and unforgiving, Chwalinska looked a shadow of the player who had outmanoeuvred opponent after opponent to reach the championship match.
As No.8 seed Andreeva's groundstrokes found their range and her confidence swelled, Chwalinska's touch deserted her.
The Pole's trademark drop shots and changes of pace yielded diminishing returns, and the Russian teenager seized control to complete a breakthrough triumph that confirmed her arrival among the game's elite.
The opening set was a nervous affair, with both players struggling to settle under the pressure of a Major final.
Chwalinska was only the second female player since tennis turned professional in 1968 to make it to the final of a major after Britain's Emma Raducanu won the 2021 US Open.
The Pole survived a marathon opening service game in which she saved three break points with a combination of deft drop shots and fearless forehand winners but neither player managed to establish control.
Breaks were exchanged repeatedly as errors flowed from both rackets, Andreeva contributing two double faults in one service game while Chwalinska's forehand repeatedly misfired.
At 3-3, however, the balance shifted decisively.
Andreeva began finding greater depth and weight on her heavy groundstrokes, forcing Chwalinska on to the defensive and drawing errors from her opponent's racket.
The Russian broke for 4-3 when Chwalinska netted a sliced backhand, consolidated for 5-3 and pounced on a nervy final service game to wrap up the set.
Andreeva then broke to go 2-0 up after yet another unforced forehand error from Chwalinska, who wasted three break points and dropped serve again to fall 4-0 behind.
Chwalinska pulled a break back and rallied to 5-2 down, only for Andreeva, the first teenager to lift the Suzanne Lenglen Cup since Poland's Iga Swiatek in 2020, to seal victory and the title on her opponent's serve with a crosscourt backhand winner.
She will pocket $US3.22 million ($4.57 million) for winning the title while Chwalinska will take home $US1.61 million ($2.28 million), about twice the amount she had collected since the beginning of her career.
Andreeva said her maiden grand slam triumph felt even better than she had imagined and she is already eager to experience the feeling again.
"I'll be honest, I've done a lot of visualisations before. Not just this tournament, but I've had dreams, I've had a lot of thoughts on how it's going to happen, if it's going to happen, when it's going to happen, where," Andreeva said.
"I would say the feeling in real life is so much better, obviously, than in your dreams. Yeah, it just feels looking at this trophy and realising that this is actually true, and I can call myself a grand slam champion."
Andreeva said winning her first Major in Paris made the milestone even more special.
"I always said that it wouldn't matter to me. A grand slam is a grand slam. Whatever comes first, I'll be super happy with it," she added.
"I kind of feel pretty happy that Paris came first, because I love playing on clay. I have played almost all my life on the surface. I also speak a little bit of French.
"So I felt like this would be the perfect first grand slam for me to come, and so super happy that it happened here."
Even as she savoured the moment in Paris, Andreeva said her thoughts were already drifting towards the next big opportunity on grasscourts, with Wimbledon set to begin on 29 June.
"These feelings are extra special. Now I'm already thinking of how I'm going to prepare for the grass season, how I'm going to play grass tournaments," Andreeva said.
"I feel like this thing is a little bit addictive, and I really want to do my best to experience all of this for the second time."













