Tennis-A star is born as Andreeva eases into Grand Slam winners’ club

By Julien Pretot

PARIS, June 6 (Reuters) – Mirra Andreeva announced herself as the latest member of the elite players in women’s tennis on Saturday when she beat surprise finalist Maja Chwalinska 6-3 6-2 to become the youngest French Open champion in more than three decades.

The 19-year-old Russian, long regarded as one of the sport’s brightest prospects, delivered on her promise on the biggest stage of all, claiming a maiden Grand Slam title and joining the select group of active major champions led by players such as Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff.

In doing so, Andreeva became the youngest women’s singles champion at Roland Garros since Monica Seles won her third consecutive title in Paris in 1992, a milestone that underlined the Russian’s precocious talent and scale of her achievement.

While Chwalinska’s remarkable run from qualifying captured the imagination and triggered praise from the greats of the game over the past fortnight, the final belonged to a player who increasingly looks equipped to shape the sport’s future. 

As the 24-year-old Pole struggled to reproduce the tactical brilliance that had carried her through nine successive victories, Andreeva grew stronger with every game, imposing her power, absorbing the pressure and leaving little doubt that a new force has arrived at the top of the women’s game.

Chwalinska, however, is now allowed to dream of joining the club. Despite her below-par performance in the final, she will now jump to 21st in the world rankings.

There was no sign of a change of guard in the men’s doubles as Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos retained the title with a dominant 6-4 6-2 win over Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten, claiming their third Grand Slam title as a pair.

Spaniard Granollers and Argentine Zeballos, who initially paired up in 2019, won the French Open and U.S. Open last year and justified their top seeding, having not dropped a set in their 2026 Roland Garros campaign.

TWO MAJOR DEBUTANTS IN WOMEN’S FINAL

The women’s title featured two Grand Slam final debutants, and the most experienced, albeit the youngest, prevailed on a windswept Court Philippe Chatrier.

Eighth-seeded Andreeva’s heavy groundstrokes began to penetrate through the wind while Chwalinska’s trademark touch and variety increasingly deserted her, allowing the Russian to take command of the contest.

The opening set was a tense affair, with both players struggling to cope with the pressure of a maiden Grand Slam final.

Chwalinska, only the second woman in the professional era to come through qualifying and reach a Grand Slam final after Britain’s Emma Raducanu won the 2021 U.S. Open, survived a marathon opening service game in which she saved three break points with a mixture of delicate drop shots and bold winners.

Neither player, however, could establish control.

Breaks were traded repeatedly, Andreeva surrendering one service game with two double faults while Chwalinska’s forehand repeatedly let her down.

At 3-3, Andreeva began finding greater depth and weight off her wings, pushing Chwalinska behind the baseline and growing in confidence, even smiling after netting an easy overhead smash.

She broke for 4-3 when Chwalinska netted a sliced backhand, consolidated for 5-3 and then capitalised on another nervous service game to claim the opening set.

The Russian carried that momentum into the second, breaking immediately and again for a 4-0 lead as Chwalinska struggled to contain her opponent’s relentless pressure.

The Pole briefly threatened a comeback, recovering one break and reducing the deficit to 5-2, but Andreeva remained unmoved, sealing the biggest victory of her young career with a crisp crosscourt backhand winner on her opponent’s serve.

The triumph earned Andreeva $3.22 million in prize money, while Chwalinska collected $1.61 million, roughly double her career earnings before arriving in Paris.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Additional reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Paris; Editing by Ken Ferris)