As the top-ranked woman and the defending champion, Iga Swiatek was favored all along to win the French Open for the third time. (More Tennis News)
As someone who never has been to a major final and is ranked 43rd, Karolina Muchova was not on the list of expected title winners.
They will meet Saturday to decide the trophy at Roland Garros.
Swiatek is a 22-year-old from Poland who has led the WTA rankings for more than a year — and is assured of staying at the top next week no matter what happens in Paris.
She can become the youngest woman since Monica Seles from 1990-92 to claim consecutive titles at Roland Garros and join Seles and Naomi Osaka as the only women in the professional era to start a career 4-0 in major finals.
Muchova is a 26-year-old from the Czech Republic whose ranking is in part a reflection of the various injuries she has endured in recent years.
She can become fourth unseeded woman to lift the trophy at the French Open — and all have come in the past seven years, including Swiatek in 2020.
Muchova showed what she can do when she used her varied skills to come back after facing a match point while trailing 5-2 in the semifinals against No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, grabbing the last five games and 20 of the last 24 points to win.
That victory made Muchova 5-0 in matches against opponents ranked in the Top 3.
Beating Swiatek would make that mark 6-0.
“I really like her game, honestly. I really respect her, and she’s, I feel like, a player who can do anything. She has great touch. She can also speed up the game,” Swiatek said. “She plays with that kind of, I don’t know, freedom in her movements. And she has a great technique. So, I watched her matches and I feel like I know her game pretty well.”
