Ahead of joining compatriot Iga Swiatek at the Paris Olympics, Magda Linette and Magdalena Frech will prepare by contesting the first all-Polish WTA final of the Open Era.

Linette and Frech, ranked 48th and 57th respectively by the WTA, will both take part in the Olympic singles tournament at Roland-Garros, for which four-time French Open champion Swiatek is the firm favourite.

While Swiatek has been drawn to face Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu in the first round, Linette will face Mirra Andreeva and Frech is set to take on Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova.

Before then, though, the latter duo will go head-to-head in the final of the Prague Open.

Both overcame home favourites to advance to the showpiece match in Czechia, Linette beating first seed Linda Noskova 6-3 3-6 7-6 (7-2).

Frech, meanwhile, benefitted from a walkover against 16-year-old Laura Samsonova, the former Wimbledon girl's champion being forced to retire while down 3-6 6-0 4-2.

Frech, who is yet to win a WTA Tour-level title, won the only previous meeting between the pair in the Saint Malo quarter-finals in 2022, triumphing 7-5 6-7 (2-7) 6-2.

Rafael Nadal could face Novak Djokovic in a heavyweight second-round match at the Paris Olympic Games after the draws for the tennis tournaments were made on Thursday.

Nadal is widely expected to retire from tennis later this year, with the Olympics set to represent his swansong at Roland-Garros, where he has won 14 French Open titles.

He will play in both the singles and doubles tournaments, partnering current French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz for the latter competition.

Nadal and Alcaraz will face Argentina's fourth-seeded pair Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni in a difficult first-round matchup in the doubles tournament.

Nadal is one of just two players to have won Olympic gold in both singles and doubles since the sport returned to the Games in 1988, doing so at Beijing 2008 (singles) and Rio 2016 (doubles) – Nicolas Massu triumphed over both events at Athens 2004.

In the singles, Nadal will take on Hungary's Marton Fucsovics in the opening round, and the prize could be a second-round date with Djokovic, who faces Australian Matthew Ebden first.

They are on the same side of the draw as third seed Alexander Zverev, who faces Jaume Munar first, and seventh seed Taylor Fritz, who opens against Alexander Bublik.

On the opposite side of the bracket, Alcaraz will start his campaign against Hady Habib, with Britain's Cameron Norrie a potential second-round opponent.

Fourth seed Daniil Medvedev faces Rinky Hijikata in his first match, while fifth seed Alex de Minaur is a potential quarter-final opponent for Alcaraz.

Britain's Andy Murray withdrew from the singles event to concentrate on his doubles bid alongside Dan Evans on Thursday, and the duo will face Kei Nishikori and Taro Daniel of Japan first.

Should they advance, home favourites Arthur Fils and Ugo Humbert could await in round two, with Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul potential quarter-final foes, though the Americans will have to overcome Canada's Milos Raonic and Felix Auger Aliassime to get that far.

Murray and Evans cannot face Nadal and Alcaraz until the final. 

Iga Swiatek is the strong favourite in the women's draw, having won four French Open titles on the Paris clay. Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu is her round-one opponent.

On her same side of the draw, there is a huge round-one clash between Naomi Osaka and 2016 silver medallist Angelique Kerber, who announced on Thursday that she will retire after the Games.

Elena Rybakina and Danielle Collins are also on that side of the draw, while Coco Gauff starts against Ajla Tomljanovic on the opposite side of the bracket.

Every four years, players across the ATP and WTA Tours get another shot at major glory.

And with three grand slams already down in 2024, the Paris Olympics provides that extra shot in the arm as players across the board gun for gold.

The big names are descending on Roland-Garros for a second time this season, with the famous venue of the French Open playing host to the Olympic tennis tournament.

Iga Swiatek and Rafael Nadal, two dominant forces on the Parisian clay, will be in action, while Andy Murray, a two-time Olympic gold medallist, is making his final appearance before retirement.

Novak Djokovic is also set to feature, while Carlos Alcaraz and Coco Gauff will play at their first Olympics, though Jannik Sinner, the men's world number one, has had to withdraw due to illness.

Here, we outline the main storylines ahead of the tournament starting on Saturday.

Murray's last hurrah

This will be it for Murray. The three-time grand slam champion, and former world number one, is finally bowing out.

The 37-year-old, who won gold in the men's singles at London 2012 and Rio 2016, as well as claiming silver in the mixed doubles at the first of those Games, confirmed his impending retirement on Tuesday.

Murray is the only man with multiple singles gold medals since tennis returned to the Olympic program in 1988. He will become the first British athlete to appear in four singles draws at the Games, too.

He is one of just eight players in the Open Era to have won 200 or more matches at majors, while only Nadal, Djokovic and Roger Federer have won more ATP 1000 matches than Murray since the format's introduction in 1990.

The Scot will bow out as the British player with the most singles titles on the ATP Tour in the Open Era (46).

The Dream Team

There are so many stars for fans in Paris to take in, but arguably the main attraction will be the doubles dream team of Nadal and his heir apparent Alcaraz, who are pairing up to represent Spain.

This team counts the record champion at Roland-Garros (14) in Nadal, and the reigning champion in Alcaraz.

While four-time major champion Alcaraz is featuring at his first Olympics, Nadal is a veteran campaigner at the Games, having scooped gold in the singles at Beijing 2008 and in the doubles in Rio eight years ago.

Nadal is one of two players to secure an Olympic gold in both the men's singles and doubles since tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988, alongside Nicolas Massu (both at Athens 2004).

Like Murray, Nadal is set to bow out in the coming months, and what better way to go than winning gold with the player who could well go on to match his feats?

Nadal's great rival Djokovic, meanwhile, will surely also be playing at his final Games.

Djokovic will become the player with the joint-most appearances in men's singles at the Olympics (five, equalling Yen Hsun Lu) since the sport returned to the Games 36 years ago.

The Serbian is the player with the most matches played (19) and joint-most matches won (13, level with Federer) at the Olympics since 1988.

Swiatek's Roland-Garros return

Women's world number one Swiatek loves Roland-Garros just as much as Nadal does.

Four of the 23-year-old's five grand slam titles have come at the venue, including her success earlier this year. In fact, Swiatek has won four of the past five French Open titles.

Swiatek lost in the second round in Tokyo, but given her dominance in Paris in recent years, she has to be considered the favourite in the women's draw.

Indeed, only Margaret Court (95.2%) has a higher winning percentage at Roland-Garros than Swiatek (94.6%) in the Open Era.

That being said, the incumbent world number one has won gold at the Olympics only twice: Steffi Graf in 1988 and Justine Henin in 2004.

Aryna Sabalenka rivalled Swiatek throughout this season's clay-court swing. The Belarusian, who will be competing under a neutral banner, lost in the second round in Tokyo three years ago. 

Gauff flying the flag

There was heartbreak for Gauff three years ago, as she missed out on what would have been her maiden Games after testing positive for COVID-19.

All being well, that won't be an issue this time around, and the 20-year-old will have the honour of bearing the United States flag at Friday's opening ceremony. She will be the first tennis player to fly the flag for Team USA.

Gauff, the world number two, has reached the quarters, the final, the quarters again and the semi-finals in her last four appearances at the French Open - will she finally break her Roland-Garros duck?

If she does, then Gauff will join Graf (1988), Jennifer Capriati (1992), Lindsay Davenport (1996) and Venus Williams (2000) as the women to win Olympic gold before turning 21.

Former world number one Naomi Osaka, who lit the torch in Tokyo, should not be discounted either.

She is looking to become the second Japanese player to secure an Olympic medal since tennis' return to the Games, after Kei Nishikori's bronze in Rio.

Donna Vekic revealed she was in "so much pain" in her record-breaking Wimbledon semi-final defeat to Jasmine Paolini, explaining her tears in the third set of a marathon match.

Vekic let slip a first-set lead to lose 2-6 6-4 7-6 (10-8) on Centre Court and miss out on a major final debut.

It appeared emotions had got the better of the first-time semi-finalist as victory slipped away despite a further early break in the decider, eventually losing after two hours and 51 minutes.

This was the longest women's singles semi in Wimbledon history, and Vekic insisted her tears were provoked by the punishment her body took in the epic encounter.

"I thought I was going to die in the third set," Vekic said in her post-match news conference. "I had so much pain in my arm, in my leg.

"It was not easy out there, but I will recover.

"I was more crying because I had so much pain, I didn't know how I could keep playing. My team tells me I can be proud of myself.

"It's tough right now. It's really tough to be positive right now. It was so close." 

Paolini will now play Barbora Krejcikova in Saturday's final, her second grand slam title match after losing to perennial French Open champion Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros in June.

"Two grand slam finals in a row was crazy to believe, I think, no?" Paolini said. "I'm also surprised how at the moment, until now in this moment, I'm living this.

"I feel maybe Saturday I will be so nervous, I don't know, but I feel also relaxed. I'm the same person. I'm doing the same things. I'm surprised a little bit how I'm managing this.

"I don't want to say more, because maybe Saturday I'm going to be shaking. I'm surprising myself to live this with with really relaxing mood."

Iga Swiatek suffered a shock third-round exit at Wimbledon as the top seed fell to world number 35 Yulia Putintseva on Saturday.

Despite taking the first set, Swiatek was outclassed by the world number 35, falling to a 3-6 6-1 6-2 defeat on No. 1 Court.

The world number one had to wait until the eighth game to undo Putintseva, earning her first break point before closing out the set in dominant fashion.

Though many predicted Swiatek to hammer home her advantage, the Kazakh had other ideas. 

Putintseva responded emphatically, cutting through Swiatek to battle into her first round of 16 at Wimbledon and first at any major since making the 2020 US Open quarter-finals. 

Jelena Ostapenko awaits in the clash for a last-eight position on Monday after the Latvian needed just 59 minutes to win 6-1 6-3 against Bernarda Pera earlier in the day.

Data Debrief: Swiatek's Wimbledon hoodoo continues

Putintseva is the first women's player since Alison Riske against Ashleigh Barty in 2019 to win against the world number one at Wimbledon after losing the first set.

In stark contrast between the pair, Putintseva extended her win streak to eight matches after ending Swiatek's own run of 21 straight wins.

Swiatek still leaves the third major of the year with an outstanding 45-5 record on the season, yet grass-court tennis and Wimbledon remain a troublesome issue for the Pole.

Iga Swiatek underlined her status as favourite in the women's draw at Wimbledon by beating Petra Martic in straight sets on Thursday to reach the third round.

The world number one, who has never previously gone beyond the quarter-finals at SW19, was a 6-4 6-3 victor in one hour and 20 minutes on Centre Court.

Martic held her own until the 10th game of the opening set but the first break point she gave up was converted by Swiatek, who came through strong pressure in several games on her own serve.

The second set followed a similar pattern, Swiatek needing two break points this time as she made the breakthrough eight games in.

Martic was a beaten player from there as Swiatek served out her final game to love, a crashing forehand winner teeing up three match points, and a big serve on the first giving world number 79 Martic no chance.

Data Debrief: Swiatek replicates Serena run

Swiatek has now won 21 consecutive matches as world number one, the longest such streak by any player on the WTA Tour since Serena Williams had an identical run between the 2014 WTA Finals and the 2015 Madrid Open.

She has also made at least the round of 32 at 18 consecutive grand slams. 

In the Open Era, only Martina Navratilova (35), Conchita Martinez (30), Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (25) and Steffi Graf (19) have ever done so at more majors in a row.

Iga Swiatek soared into the second round at Wimbledon, after beginning her latest quest for a maiden title with a straight-sets win over Sofia Kenin.

The top seed, who is aiming to progress beyond the quarter-finals at SW19 for the first time, prevailed 6-3 6-4 in the battle of the Grand Slam champions after 79 minutes on No.1 Court.

Swiatek had won the two previous meetings between the players - both of which came in major events, at the 2020 French Open final and this year's Australian Open.

The four-time Roland-Garros winner made a statement of intent, breaking her opponent twice in her opponent's first two service games on the way to taking the opening set.

Former Australian Open champion Kenin, who stunned Coco Gauff in the first round 12 months ago, looked to respond and forced a break-point opportunity at 4-3 down in the second set.

However, the American saw it go begging as she sent a forehand into the net, and the set remained on serve as Swiatek set up a second-round clash with Croatia's Petra Martic.

"On this surface, it's not about the result for me, about the progress," the Pole said in her on-court interview. "I'm just trying to be better every day.

"It was a solid start and not an easy draw, so I'm happy that I have a chance to play another match here. It's not easy to play a Grand Slam champion in the first round, so we have to be ready for everything.

"Obviously, I had a great beginning of the season, so I feel like I can come here and not worry about points or anything, and just focus on what I want to focus on. These are experienced players, so there’s no time to get into the tournament."

Data Debrief: Super Swiatek matches Henin and Radwanska

Swiatek arrived at Wimbledon with five titles to her name already this season, including three on the spin in Madrid, Rome and the French Open.

The world number one has now won each of her last 20 matches, achieving that feat for the second time in her career. Justine Henin in 2005 was the last player to register multiple streaks of 20+ WTA match wins before turning 24.

Notching her fifth straight win against a former major champion, Swiatek has now registered 72 Grand Slam singles wins, more than any other woman since the turn of the century.

She is also only the second player in the Open Era to win in the opening round of all the first 18 major events in a single decade, after compatriot Agnieszka Radwanska did so in the 2010s.

Iga Swiatek's stunning rise to stardom continues at a momentous pace, and she is enjoying a wonderfully successful campaign.

Her clay-court swing was superb, with Swiatek reeling off victories in Madrid and Rome before claiming her third successive French Open title, and fourth overall.

Yet for all her joy in Paris over the past four years, the 23-year-old is yet to taste victory at Wimbledon, with her run to the quarters in last year's event the best she has managed at the All England Club.

But will that run end this year, and what of the other contenders in the women's singles draw?

Swiatek's missing piece of the puzzle

Wimbledon is not the only grand slam title missing from Swiatek's growing collection, but it is the only one she has so far failed to reach at least the semi-finals in.

Swiatek has won 72 grand slam matches since the start of 2020, with Aryna Sabalenka (62) and Ons Jabeur (51) the only other players to surpass 50 in that time.

She is one of three players, along with Elena Rybakina and Danielle Collins, aiming to become just the third player since the start of 2020 to win a Tour-level title on grass, clay and hard court in a calendar year, after Ashleigh Barty (2021) and Caroline Garcia (2022).

The Pole is also out to match a couple of Serena Williams feats.

Should she win, she will be the youngest player since Williams in 2002 to triumph at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same season, while that would make Swiatek the first player to win successive singles titles at grand slams since Williams won the French Open and Wimbledon in 2015.

Swiatek has been handed a tough start, however. She will face Sofia Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion, in the first round.

That being said, Swiatek won in straight sets in both of her previous meetings with Kenin (Roland Garros 2020 and this year's Australian Open).

History is also on her side. The player ranked at world number one has won their first-round tie in each of the last 19 women's singles at grand slams – the last time a number one lost in the opening round of a major was at the US Open 2018, with Kaia Kanepi defeating Simona Halep.

Swiatek is also the only woman to appear in all the grand slam events since 2020 without ever losing in the first round in that span (17-0).

Sabalenka racing against time, Gauff's chance to shine?

Sabalenka's tussle with Swiatek was a highlight of the clay-court swing, though the Belarusian has acknowledged she may not be fit enough to feature at Wimbledon as she deals with a shoulder issue.

She has hit 309 winners in grand slam matches this year, the most of any player. Should she play and go all the way, Sabalenka would be just the third player to win the Australian Open and Wimbledon in the same calendar year after Williams (2003, 2009-10 and 15) and Amelie Mauresmo (2006).

Sabalenka is looking to become the first player to make the quarter-finals in eight consecutive grand slams since Williams (10 between the US Open 2014 and the Australian Open 2017), while the 26-year-old has won the opening round in her last 15 grand slam appearances.

Should the world number three not make it, then second seed Coco Gauff seems set to be Swiatek's main rival.

It is five years ago since Gauff burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old by stunning Venus Williams.

However, she has never made it further than the last 16 and was knocked out by compatriot Kenin in the first round last year.

Reigning US Open champion Gauff will face Caroline Dolehide in the first round. Their only other Tour-level meeting came at this year's Australia Open.

Gauff will be the youngest player to feature in the women's singles at Wimbledon seeded in the top two since Maria Sharapova in 2007, while she and Swiatek combine to be the youngest seeded number one and two (43 years and 141 days) at the tournament in women's singles since 2003 (Williams and Kim Clijsters).

The main battle for Gauff may well be getting on top of the surface. She has won 66.7% of her WTA main draw matches on grass (18-9); this is her lowest winning percentage on a single surface (72.3% on clay and 68.8% on hard court). 

Home hopes

Emma Raducanu enjoyed a remarkable rise to stardom in 2021, impressing at Wimbledon before going on to claim her maiden grand slam title at Flushing Meadows.

But that whirlwind success made way for difficult campaigns in 2022 and 2023, blighted by injuries and poor form.

However, the 21-year-old has hit her stride this grass-court season and reached the last four at the Nottingham Open before claiming her first victory over a top-10 opponent when she beat Jessica Pegula at Eastbourne.

She also reached the quarters in Stuttgart in April, losing to Swiatek, and was unfortunate to be drawn against Sabalenka at Indian Wells before that. Ranked at 135 in the world, Raducanu is certainly a long shot, but she will have the backing of the home crowd, as will Katie Boulter.

Fresh from winning the Nottingham Open, world number 29 Boulter will go up against Tatjana Maria in the first round.

Boulter is the only seeded British player in the women's singles – she is just the third Briton to be seeded at Wimbledon this century after Johanna Konta (2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019) and Raducanu (2022).

In the last three years, only Ons Jabeur (22) has won more grass-court matches than Boulter (21, level with Ekaterina Alexandrova), who has also won more matches at Wimbledon (six) than any of the other majors combined.

The 27-year-old also leads the way for winners struck in the grass-court swing so far, with 256, so she is one to watch.

The wildcards

Marketa Vondrousova is the only unseeded player to win the women's singles title at Wimbledon in the Open Era, after her dream run last year.

Vondrousova (42 at the time of last year's tournament) is the lowest-ranked winner of the title in the past four decades. She is one of only two players ranked outside the WTA's top 25 to win the event over that span, along with Venus Williams in 2007.

Now ranked at world number six, Vondrousova will have a target on her back this year, but will some other unseeded players or wildcards fancy their chances?

Four former grand slam champions (Angelique Kerber, Raducanu, Caroline Wozniacki and Naomi Osaka) will appear in a women's singles major main draw thanks to wild cards for the first time in the Open Era.

Osaka has only won four matches at Wimbledon, making this her least favourite grand slam, though only Caroline Garcia (10.5) has averaged more aces per match in the majors this season than the Japanese star.

Kerber is the player with the most main draw wins in Wimbledon (38) among those featuring in the tournament in 2024 and is featuring at a major thanks to a wildcard for the first time in her career.

Only Victoria Azarenka (16, including 2024) has more main-draw appearances at Wimbledon than Kerber (15) among those featuring at this year's edition.

Wozniacki will appear in Wimbledon's main draw thanks to a wildcard for the second time in her career, after 2007. She has never reached the quarters at the event.

Naomi Osaka put her French Open disappointment behind her to advance to the next round of the Libema Open after beating Elise Mertens in straight sets. 

The 26-year-old had match point against eventual winner Iga Swiatek in the second round at Roland-Garros but failed to capitalise. However, that defeat was put to the back of her mind, winning 6-2 6-4 in the Netherlands. 

Mertens matched Osaka in the opening exchanges, but the Japanese would rally to take control and win the next three games to secure an early advantage. 

She showed signs of frustration in the second set as the Belgian threatened to take the encounter to a deciding set, but Osaka remained composed to see out the victory. 

Osaka will now face either Bernarda Pera or Suzan Lamens in the next round. 

Data Debrief: Osaka wins maiden grass encounter against Mertens

Osaka's victory saw her win 28 of her 31 first-serve points, accumulating to a 90 per cent success rate. 

The Japanese claimed her fifth victory over Mertens since their first meeting in Wuhan in 2019, but her triumph was the first encounter between the pair on a grass court. 

An emotional Jasmine Paolini says this year's French Open was "the best days of my life" following her final defeat to Iga Swiatek on Saturday.

It was the Italian’s maiden Grand Slam final after she saw off Mirra Andreeva in straight sets in the semi-finals.

Paolini was already assured of breaking into the top 10 in the WTA rankings on Monday, no matter her result in the final.

She also booked her place in the women's doubles final after coming from behind with partner Sara Errani and will be playing that showpiece on Sunday.

Speaking after the single’s final, Paolini said she could not believe the journey she had been on in the past two weeks.

"Thanks for coming. I really enjoyed playing today," a choked-up Paolini said.

"The best days of my life, I think. Tomorrow, I have the doubles final. It's been a very intense 15 days, and I'm really happy to be here.

"Today was tough, but I'm really proud of myself anyway. You were cheering for me and that is unbelievable.

"I have to say congratulations to you, Iga. Playing you here is the toughest challenge in the sport. You are doing a great job - world number one and many slams.

"I want to thank my team, my family, everyone who is cheering for me every day. Congratulations to everyone who made this tournament special."

Iga Swiatek thanked the fans at the French Open for giving her the belief she needed to win the tournament after nearly being knocked out in the second round.

The world number one won her fourth title at Roland Garros, and her third in a row with a dominant 6-2, 6-1 victory over Jasmine Paolini on Saturday.

However, she almost made a shock early exit in the tournament at the hands of Naomi Osaka but pulled off an incredible comeback.

Swiatek saved a match point against the former world number one to come from 5-2 down to win the deciding set 7-5, setting her on her way to the trophy.

Now, she is the second player in the Open Era to win all of her first five Women's Singles Grand Slam finals after Monica Seles.

From the round of 16 onwards, Swiatek dropped just 11 games combined on her way to securing the title, but following her win, she said it was the crowd in Paris that boosted her confidence following that game.

"I love this place, I wait every year to come back here," Swiatek said after winning her title.

"I was almost out in the second round so thank you for still cheering for me. I needed to believe that this was possible. It’s been an emotional tournament. Thank you for supporting me.

"I want to thank my team, my family, without them I wouldn't be here. I want to thank everyone who made this tournament possible."

Paolini played in her maiden Grand Slam final and also reached the doubles final on Sunday with partner Sara Errani.

Swiatek was full of praise for her opponent and wished her well in her upcoming showpiece.

"Congrats for an amazing tournament," she added.

"I'm really impressed with how you've been playing these last two weeks. I hope we'll have many more matches in final rounds."

Iga Swiatek wins her third consecutive French Open title with a dominant straight-sets victory over Jasmine Paolini on Saturday.

The world number one's brilliant winning streak continued as she won 6-2, 6-1 in one hour and eight minutes on court Philippe-Chatrier.

Paolini, playing in her maiden grand slam final, caused a few nerves by getting an early break, but it was exactly what Swiatek needed to get her focus.

Swiatek won every game in the first set from that point, using power to force Paolini to cover more ground. As mistakes crept into her game, the Pole pushed harder and took the lead.

Swiatek upped her level once more in the second set, with the Italian struggling to find any answers to get back into the tie.

The 23-year-old worked her way through the gears neatly, earning another double break to storm through the first five games.

In her last chance to stay in the match, Paolini went on the offensive to ensure she did not end up on the wrong end of a bagel scoreline, but it only took one more game for Swiatek to wrap up her fifth grand slam title.

Swiatek chases down greats

Swiatek has been equalling records for fun this year, and that only continued with her French Open victory on Saturday.

She now has an impressive four titles at Roland Garros under her belt, and she is just the second women's player to win three consecutively since Justine Henin between 2005 and 2007, and the youngest since Monica Seles between 1990-92.

She is also just the second women's player to win all five of her finals in Grand Slams after Seles during the Open Era, having won the US Open in 2022 as well.

Not only that, but Swiatek is the first player to win three consecutive titles at a single Grand Slam tournament since Serena Williams dominated the US Open between 2012-14.

Swiatek had already previously picked up silverware at the Qatar Open, Indian Wells, Madrid Open and Italian Open in 2024 before adding the Grand Slam title.

She was the favourite going into Saturday's match-up and looked unstoppable, and many will be left wondering just how far she will be able to go in the rest of the year.

A French Open run to be proud of for Paolini

Labelled as a late-bloomer, Paolini is the third player in the last decade to reach her first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros after turning 28, along with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (2021) and Lucie Safarova (2015).

It was always going to be a tough ask for Paolini to get her hands on the French Open trophy going up against as formidable an opponent as Swiatek.

Though she had already pulled off a big upset against Elena Rybakina in the quarter-finals, and it looked like she could be on for another shock after a strong opening, she struggled to match her opponent's aggression.

2024 has already seen Paolini undergo huge changes – she came into the year with a losing record of 78-87 and one career title.

Since the turn of the year, she is 22-10 with one trophy and has the French Open doubles final to look forward to on Sunday with partner Sara Errani.

She is already confirmed to move into the top 10 of the rankings following the end of the tournament, having said before the final that she never dreamed this far ahead, only taking each match as it came. 

Jasmine Paolini says she started to "dream step by step" before making it to her maiden grand slam final at Roland Garros.

The Italian saw off Mirra Andreeva in straight sets on Thursday to book a showdown against world number one Iga Swiatek as she aims to win her first major title.

Paolini has already pulled off one major upset at the tournament, knocking out Elena Rybakina in the quarter-finals over three sets in impressive fashion.

No matter what happens in the final, Paolini is already assured of breaking into the top 10 in the WTA rankings on Monday and will be ranked, at minimum, number seven at the end of the tournament.

Asked if this was a moment that she imagined when she was young in training, Paolini admitted that was not the case.

"I was watching grand slam finals. I was watching the other Italians make it in the finals, and also won grand slams, but imagining that can be myself was tough," she said.

"Of course, I wished, but now it's something crazy for me. I'm really happy. Also surprised.

"I never dreamed to be number one, grand slam champion. Never dreamed so big. Never.

"Never maybe dream to be in the top 10, but I was hoping, but not really believing it. I think step by step I started to believe, but to dream for closer things.

"I think it's important to dream, but I started to dream, I think, step by step. Not too far away."

Swiatek is chasing a third consecutive French Open title and is a heavy favourite to win it going into the final.

Paolini was full of praise for the Pole but said she would not be intimidated by her opponent.

"Iga is an unbelievable player. So young, but so many achievements and grand slams. Here she won three times," she added. "She's doing well week by week, and that's not easy. So I have huge respect for her.

"My goal is to step on the court on Saturday and try to enjoy the match and to enjoy that moment and to try to play a good match and to make a good performance on the court."

Iga Swiatek believes her victory over Naomi Osaka helped her adjust to Roland-Garros as she reached the final of the French Open following victory over Coco Gauff. 

The world number one saved a match point against Osaka in the second round of the competition, pulling off a comeback to triumph 7-6 (7-1) 1-6 7-5 on Court Philippe-Chatrier. 

Swiatek saved a match point against the former world number one, and from 5-2 down in the deciding set, it was the Pole who prevailed.

Since then, the 23-year-old has lost just 14 games across the next four rounds and is one match away from becoming the first woman to win the tournament in three straight years since Justine Henin in 2007. 

And she credited that win over Osaka as the turning point in her latest French Open campaign.

"Something changed [after the Osaka match]," Swiatek said after beating Andreeva.

"I adjusted better to the court, and it’s not easy to play first matches in a grand slam because the atmosphere is much different in other tournaments.

"Against Naomi, I didn’t have time to get into it. She was intense from the beginning and put pressure on me. I'm happy that I handled it well. The weather changed also; it helped my game and I gained confidence."

Reflecting on a dominant 6-2 6-4 defeat of reigning US Open champion Gauff, Swiatek said: "It was intense.

"In the second set, it was tight because we were breaking each other. But I'm happy that I was consistent with my tactics, didn't overthink stuff, and just went for it at the end."

Swiatek and Gauff have now faced off 12 times, but the American has won just one of those matches. 

"I think [Gauff] is progressing a lot," Swiatek added.

"You can see by her results. Last year’s US Open showed that she's tough. At this age, it's obvious that she's going to grow. It's nice to see her handling everything around her well because it’s not easy. 

"I'm sure we're going to have more really intense matches at the highest level because Coco is also one of the most consistent players out there."

Swiatek will face Jasmine Paolini in Saturday's final.

Iga Swiatek will have the chance to win a third straight French Open title on Saturday after a brilliant performance saw her overpower Coco Gauff in straight sets in the semi-finals.

Three-time Roland Garros champion Swiatek only dropped one set en route to the final four – in a three-sets victory over Naomi Osaka in the second round – and she looked a cut above once again on Thursday in a 6-2 6-4 win.

Having won 10 of her previous 11 meetings with Gauff, Swiatek set the tone by breaking in the very first game, Gauff looking tense as she committed two unforced errors.

Swiatek was forced to save break point with a monster serve but that was as close as Gauff came in the opener, the American committing 18 unforced errors to her opponent's five. 

Gauff improved at the start of the second set, but she was unable to match Swiatek's power and accuracy in the longer rallies and her frustration got the better of her in the third game, briefly breaking down in tears after a row with the umpire over an overruled out call. 

She recovered to go a break up thanks to a whipped forehand, but Swiatek hit straight back to level things then inched ahead as an overhead smash brought another break.

She failed to convert two match points in a back-and-forth game on Gauff's serve but that was just a temporary setback as Gauff sent a wild forehand wide on her fourth match point. 

Data Debrief: Swiatek emulates Navratilova

Swiatek's victory moved her to 8-2 versus top-10 seeds at grand slams. In the last 40 years, Martina Navratilova is the only other woman to manage eight wins in her first 10 such matches.

She will now be the heavy favourite when she faces Mirra Andreeva or Jasmine Paolini in the final.