French Open 2022 Highlights, Women's semi-finals: Coco Gauff sets up final with Iga Swiatek

Talk about quick progress and development

Gauff signs off with a “Peace. End gun violence” on the camera lens

Younglings dominate WTA unlike the ATP

Gauff is a third youngest Grand Slam finalist since 2000

Coco Gauff into the French Open final

Coco Gauff beats Martina Trevisan 6-3, 6-1 in 88 minutes to move into the French Open final. Gauff winning 9 of the last 10 games to set up a final against Iga Swiatek. She is the youngest finalist at Roland Garros since 2001 (Kim Clijsters)

Trevisan 3-6, 1-5 *Gauff (* denotes next server)

Gauff capitalising on the purchase from her groundstrokes to keep Trevisan serving. Plenty of bounce on her forehands, lots of spin and she has the Italian pegged back and working for long. Now a backhand winner, deep into the court, brings the game back to deuce. Gauff creates an 11th break point of the match with Trevisan’s forehand hitting the net. Trevisan approaches the net but the reply to a low Gauff ball is tame. The American runs forward and forces an error. BREAK!

Trevisan* 3-6, 1-4 Gauff (* denotes next server)

Gauff consolidates the break to go double break up. She holds to love and this match is going one way on the American’s serve. How much does Martina have left?

Trevisan 3-6, 1-3 *Gauff (* denotes next server)

Trevisan with heavy strapping on her right thigh earlier in the set. She’s struggling with her movement and an errant forehand gives Gauff a break point. It is saved! Trevisan goes cross on the forehand and the defensive lob from Coco goes long. Crowd trying to cheer the Italian player on! Gauff chipping in, putting pressure, prolonging points and closes the point out at the net with a volley winner to bring the game back to deuce. Double fault gives Gauff another chance to break. The Italian player struggling to jump and get off on the serve. But she’s fighting, not giving up at all! Gauff had the opportunity to get the break but didn’t get the contact on the forehand and then a volley before Trevisan smacked a winner of her own. On deuce, a 13-shot rally ends with Trevisan lofting her hands in the air. The unseeded player doing exceptionally well to get to a drop shot and then pushing it for a winner. Trevisan saves a second break point with a backhand winner, into the corner, and going behind Gauff. This game going past the 13 minute mark. Uh oh! Double fault and a third break point for Gauff now. BREAK! 14 minutes later, Gauff gets the job done. She slaps a backhand winner and a hapless Trevisan can only see the ball run away and hit the back of the court. Is that job done?

First set: Coco Gauff 6-3

Coco Gauff takes the opening set 6-3 and she’s one set away from a maiden Grand Slam final. Trevisan sending the ball long and the American has handled the disturbances and disruptions well to coast through to take the opener

Trevisan* 3-3 Gauff (* denotes next server)

Tough day for chair umpire Marijana Veljovic already. She’s been told off (in a way…), had a lengthy chat with Gauff on a line call and been asked to come down from the chair to check very close balls twice more. Over on the court, Gauff’s drop shot isn’t good enough and neither is the volley as Trevisan laps up her own volley winner. And then closes the game out by seeing a Gauff backhand sail long. BREAK!

Trevisan* 2-2 Gauff (* denotes next server)

A double-handed volley into the open court brings up a break point for Trevisan to break back. Gauff hands it to her on a platter with a double fault. BREAK!

Dramatic start to Trevisan-Gauff

Coco Gauff is not happy with Martina Trevisan’s grunting/screaming. “Too loud or no? I normally don’t care but when I’m hitting it, she is still screaming.”

Trevisan told off by the chair umpire for her elongated grunting, and has no interest in it. “I think I’m alright. I don’t need to change anything.”

Intro: Coco Gauff (USA)

Gauff is bidding to be youngest finalist at Roland Garros since Kim Clijsters in 2001 and at any Slam since Maria Sharapova at 2004 Wimbledon. 

She’s yet to drop a set this fortnight, breaking serve a total of 29 times in her five matches. 

By reaching semis, Gauff is projected to move into the top-20 and would make top-10 debut by winning the title

Also through to doubles SF alongside Jessica Pegula

Crowned girls’ singles champion here in 2018

The SF line-up in Paris has contained at least one American in four of the past five years

Intro: Martina Trevisan (Italy)

Trevisan advanced to Roland Garros quarter-final as a qualifier two years ago, beating Gauff en-route. After lifting maiden WTA title at Rabat last week, is on a 10-match winning streak, with eight of them coming in straight sets. Only previous semi-final in Paris pitting an Italian against an American was Serena Williams’ one-sided victory over Sara Errani in 2013. She’s the seventh unseeded semifinalist in Paris in the last four years. Attempting to become lowest-ranked finalist in Roland Garros history. With a win today, she’ll overtake Giorgi as the top-ranked Italian woman

Second semi-final: Trevisan vs Gauff

Now to the second semi-final featuring Italy’s Martina Trevisan and USA’s Coco Gauff – both first-time semi-finalists at Roland Garros. Gauff is the fifth female teenager to make the semis before turning 19 joining Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin, Nicole Vaidisova and Amanda Anisimova. 59th ranked Trevisan has not gone past the second round of any other slam

What was Swiatek listening to? Led Zeppelin.

Swiatek is grateful to be in the final

Quick numbers:

34 wins in a row ????

54 of her last 56 sets ????

13 straight wins over Top 20 players ????

Dropped 2 points on 1st serve in the opening set, and just 4 points in total on serve in the second set

The final awaits Iga Swiatek!

Iga Swiatek into the French Open final

World No 1 Iga Swiatek is into the French Open final. She beats Daria Kasatkina 6-2, 6-1 in 64 minutes to make it 34 straight matches won. Gets the job done with an ace out wide! The 2020 French Open champion is once again into the final at Roland Garros

Swiatek* 6-2, 5-1 Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

Double fault by Kasatkina makes it 0-30. And then a backhand winner brings up three break points. Second serve, 0-40, and you know what’s coming. Just 109kmph second serve and Swiatek slaps a forehand down the line for a winner. BREAK!

Poland Garros indeed!

Swiatek 6-2, 4-1 *Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

Kasatkina scrambles, rushes to her right, but is unable to get a whipping Swiatek forehand back into play. Swiatek takes a 4-1 lead and she has now won 8 of last 9 games

Pure mayhem!

Swiatek* 6-2, 3-1 Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

Swiatek off to a flier in this game. Two backhand winners bring up 0-40 with Kasatkina’s error in the middle. Kasatkina struggling to get her first serve going. On a loopy ball, in the middle of the court, Kasatkina looks to attack but misses horribly. Swiatek BREAKS!

Swiatek 6-2, 2-1 *Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

The second set going on serve. Both players stingy to begin with on serve

Set 1 in numbers

Iga Swiatek is the first player to take the first set off Daria Kasatkina this French Open

First set: Iga Swiatek 6-2

Iga Swiatek closes the first set 6-2 in 35 minutes. The World No 1 had taken a 2-0 lead before having her lead cut out. She then breaks Daria Kasatkina twice and is now one set away from the final

Swiatek* 4-2 Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

An absolutely horrid miss from Kasatkina brings up break points for Swiatek. Iga with a defensive shot that sits right up for Kasatkina to do literally anything with. Instead, she goes for a slice, hack of a shot and the ball goes well long and well wide. On break point, Swiatek thrashes a winner and she gets the BREAK once again in the first set

Swiatek* 2-2 Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

Incredible 26 shot rally that has both players moving side to side, Swiatek travelling 70+ metres and Kasatkina doing about 90 meters, before Iga spanks a forehand winner to bring up break point. But Kasatkina is on the mark to save it and then has the precision to place the backhand into the corner. On game point, her backhand goes long with the wind helping the ball along. Swiatek’s errant forehand and a great serve down the T helps Kasatkina hold.

Swiatek 2-1 *Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

Kasatkina brings the first set on serve. She goes behind Swiatek and the Pole is caught off guard completely to try and change direction. A forehand winner to get the BREAK back and Kasatkina is pumped!

Swiatek* 2-0 Kasatkina (* denotes next server)

Kasatkina’s serve under the pressure right off at the start. She saves one, two and now three break points. Doesn’t help herself with a double fault either. And a lazy backhand goes into the net and Swiatek has the BREAK!

Swiatek serves first

Iga Swiatek gets the semi-final underway. She starts with a double fault but then rolls away with four straight points to hold serve.

Run to the semi-final

Daria Kasatkina is yet to drop a set this fortnight. She’s served two bagels along the way – in the first and second round. The most she’s been pushed was in the last match, against Kudermetova, to the tiebreak

Iga Swiatek was equally devastating and brutal in her first two matches. She, too, served two bagels. The fourth round win, over Zheng, was not easy and she dropped the opening set (6-7) before coming through in straights over Pegula in the quarter-final.

Inroducing the two semi-finalists

Swiatek leads the head-to-head vs Kasatkina 3-1

Bopanna/Middelkoop’s dream run ends

Marcelo Arévalo and Jean-Julien Rojer end Rohan Bopanna and Matwe Middelkoop’s run at Roland Garros. The El Salvador-Dutch pairing winning 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (8) on third match point opportunity

Women’s semi-final preview

A pre-tournament favourite, Swiatek, who quickly filled the void at the top left by the now-retired Ashleigh Barty, has lived up to her billing. But even for the many surprises the women’s field has thrown up at Grand Slams in recent years, this French Open stood out. [Read more]