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23 hours ago
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French Open 2025
Dates: 25 May-8 June Venue: Roland Garros
Coverage: Live radio commentaries across 5 Live Sport and BBC Sounds, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website and app
World number one Aryna Sabalenka moved a step closer to a maiden French Open title by taking out four-time champion Iga Swiatek in a blockbuster semi-final.
Belarus' Sabalenka earned a 7-6 (7-1) 4-6 6-0 victory to end fifth seed Swiatek's 26-match winning run at the tournament.
After a slow start on the Roland Garros clay, Poland's Swiatek fought back to level but Sabalenka dominated a 24-minute deciding set.
Sabalenka, whose three Grand Slam titles have all come on hard courts, has never reached the Paris final before.
"It feels incredible but the job is not done yet. I'm thrilled with my performance," the 27-year-old said.
"Iga is the toughest opponent, especially at Roland Garros, I'm proud I managed to get this win."
Top seed Sabalenka will face either American second seed Coco Gauff or French wildcard Lois Boisson in Saturday's final.
Gauff, a finalist in 2022, is the heavy favourite against Boisson, who began the event ranked 361st in the world and is appearing in her first Grand Slam main draw.
This was the potential match that everyone had their eye on when the French Open draw was made: the 'Queen of Clay' against the world number one in the crunch stages.
Swiatek and Sabalenka have claimed six of the past 10 majors between them and dominated the WTA Tour in recent years.
But with Swiatek dropping to fifth in the world after a turbulent season, it was Sabalenka who came into Roland Garros as the favourite.
The magnitude of the eagerly-anticipated encounter appeared to affect both players in an edgy opening set.
With the roof closed because of the wet weather in Paris, Sabalenka initially settled quicker in the heavier conditions that suit her game.
The pace of Sabalenka's returning was too hot for Swiatek and allowed the top seed to quickly move a double break ahead.
Swiatek took a step back in her baseline position to better absorb the pace and, after being a point away from going 5-1 behind, battled back.
The tweak helped a sharper Swiatek elongate the rallies and put more pressure on Sabalenka's serve, with the Pole winning the next three games to move 5-4 ahead.
With both players looking tight, momentum continued to fluctuate.
Swiatek's serve buckled, Sabalenka could not serve out the set at 6-5 and a nervy encounter was ultimately decided on a tie-break dominated by the Belarusian.
Three successive breaks - down to quality returning as much as poor serving - began the second set before Swiatek settled down to maintain the advantage and force a decider.
However, Swiatek's serve suddenly dropped off again and allowed Sabalenka to quickly reach her fifth final in the past seven Grand Slam tournaments.
