Author: Barkha Roy
Iga Swiatek, the current world number one in women’s tennis, has booked her place in the next final for her fourth Grand Slam title and third win at Roland Garros. She achieved this by beating 14th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-2, 7-6(7) in the second semi-final of the women’s singles on Thursday.
Similar to her remarkable achievement in 2020, when she emerged as world number 54 and secured her first Grand Slam title, Iga Swiatek has continued her impressive run in the current championship, without losing a single set on her way to the final. On Saturday, she will face Karolina Muchova, another seeded player who showed great resilience by saving a match point in a thrilling comeback that lasted 3 hours and 13 minutes against world number 2 Aryna Sabalenka. She won that match 7-6(5), 6-7(5), 7-5.
Karolina Muchova, who was once in the Top 20 and is currently ranked 43rd, showed remarkable resilience in her recent match. Despite trailing 5-2 in the third set and facing a match point, Muchova refused to admit defeat. Instead, she made an incredible comeback, winning five games in a row and ultimately securing victory.
In a repeat of last year’s Roland Garros quarter-final, Casper Ruud once again emerged victorious over fellow Scandinavian Holger Rune in a thrilling four-set match on the Philippe-Chatrier court. On Wednesday night, the Norwegian, ranked fourth in the world, demonstrated his dominance by securing a 6-1, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory over his Danish opponent, thus keeping alive his hopes of reaching a consecutive final of the prestigious clay-court Major.
In a remarkable display of skill and teamwork, Miyu Kato and Tim Puetz joined forces for the first time at Roland Garros and enjoyed a fairytale journey. They won the mixed doubles title in thrilling fashion on Thursday. After a very tight final, the Japanese-German duo overcame Bianca Andreescu and Michael Venus with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 10-6 to win the prestigious crown in this important clay-court tournament after battling for an hour and 35 minutes.