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Finals WTA WTA Finals

Pegula reflects on narrow defeat to Sabalenka and the value of their battles

Pegula rued narrow loss to Sabalenka, saying their matches are memorable though she wishes wins. Now

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Jessica Pegula acknowledged the quality and drama of her rivalry with Aryna Sabalenka after a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 loss at the WTA Finals on Tuesday. The result continued a recent pattern: Sabalenka has beaten Pegula on the way to a pair of Grand Slam titles and two WTA 1000 crowns since last season began, and Pegula has now lost nine of 12 matches against her opponent.

The two said they bring out high-level tennis in each other, but Pegula again lamented falling just short, this time after being a break up in the final set. The last three meetings between them have all played out over three sets.

On the rivalry and its place in her career, Pegula said: “I do think we have really great matches, memorable matches,” she said. “I wish I won more of them … even my coaches were saying, they’re like, ‘Whenever you guys play each other, it seems like you guys seem to bring out such a high level in each other.’

“So, I feel like, do I love losing? No. But I feel like, if you asked me in 10 years, like I look back and had all these super memorable matches with her. I think it’s, it’s pretty cool. I just wish I won more of them.”

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Describing Sabalenka’s intensity, Pegula added: “I felt like she just got really angry and played really well, which tends to be what she does,” Pegula continued. “I feel like when she starts getting really hyped up and yelling, ‘Come on,’ and screaming … that’s kind of when you’ve activated another level to her. So I can either go one of two ways, and I felt like it just kind of went against me today, and she played well.”

Despite the setback, Pegula remains alive in the group. With a 1-1 record, she can reach the semifinals if she defeats Jasmine Paolini, who was eliminated from knockout contention after losing to Coco Gauff in straight sets in the other Stefanie Graf Group match on Tuesday, and if Sabalenka beats Gauff to bolster Pegula’s chances.

Looking ahead, Pegula said: “I think obviously it’s going to be a bit mental knowing that I need to win the match in order to move forward in this in this event,” Pegula said. “But at the same time, a lot of you know tactical stuff [is important] in order to kind of see what I can do differently from the last time that I played her. ]”

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Finals French Open Grand Slam

Siniakova, Townsend secure Roland Garros title and chase team Career Grand Slam

Siniakova and Townsend captured Roland Garros, their third different major, and target a Career Slam.

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Top seeds Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend returned to Grand Slam victory with a straight-sets win at Roland Garros, beating second-seeded Anna Danilina and Aleksandra Krunic 6-2, 7-5. After falling behind 4-1 in the second set, the top seeds rallied to claim the clay-court major and register their third different major trophy together.

The Paris title follows their triumphs at 2024 Wimbledon and the 2025 Australian Open, leaving the pair with an opportunity to complete a team Career Grand Slam in New York later this year. Townsend reflected on what the American major would mean, saying, “For me the US Open would mean everything for me to be able to win that. I’ve gotten close several times as well. Lost to (Katerina) the first time,” Townsend smiled when speaking to press.

Siniakova was emotional after the victory as the duo collected their seventh team title. For the Czech, who already has a Career Golden Slam with Barbora Krejcikova, this marked her 11th Grand Slam crown in women’s doubles. Four of those titles have come at the clay-court major with three different partners.

Speaking about their partnership, Siniakova said, “The game of me and Taylor is totally different. I think for the opponents it’s also really tricky, because we can change it, and we can play almost anything we want. We can just do it during the game. I’m just really glad that we kind of work on everything and play anything, because then it’s also making it easier for us.”

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The pair have been in strong form across the spring, winning four of the last five events they contested, with earlier titles at Indian Wells, Miami and Madrid. For Townsend, time away from her five-year-old son Adyn is a challenge she willingly accepts. “Of course, winning a title in a Grand Slam, it’s amazing. My dad, he was like, ‘I taped the ceremony, so I’ll show it when he wakes up.’ For (Adyn) to be able to see me succeeding, it means a lot to me, but also to be able to bring back lessons and things that I’ve learned and to come back a better person really drives and motivates me a lot,” Townsend said.

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Finals French Open Grand Slam

Mirra Andreeva wins first Grand Slam, defeats Maja Chwalinska in Paris final

Mirra Andreeva, 19, won her first Grand Slam at Roland Garros, beating Maja Chwalinska 6-3 6-2. (RG)

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Mirra Andreeva closed a remarkable fortnight at Roland Garros by defeating Maja Chwalinska 6-3, 6-2 to claim her first Grand Slam title.

The 19-year-old lifted the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen and became the first teenager to win the French Open since 2020, when Iga Swiatek prevailed at 19. Because Andreeva is the younger of the two 19-year-olds, she is the youngest woman to win Roland Garros since 1992. That year an 18-year-old Monica Seles took the title in Paris, the third of three consecutive French Open victories for Seles after wins in 1990 and 1991 at ages 16 and 17.

Andreeva’s straight-sets victory ended the extraordinary run of qualifier Maja Chwalinska, who had rewritten the tournament’s history en route to the final. Chwalinska became the first qualifier, female or male, to reach the Roland Garros final in the Open Era. Ranked No. 114 in the WTA standings, she also became the lowest-ranked player to reach the title match on the terre battue in WTA rankings history.

The final scoreline reflected Andreeva’s control through the match, and the result marks a major milestone in her career with a first Grand Slam crown. The victory places her in a select group of teenagers who have won at Roland Garros and revives historical comparisons because of her age relative to past champions.

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Chwalinska’s run, from the qualifying draw to the championship match, was an unprecedented breakthrough for a player outside the top 100 and will be noted in the record books alongside the tournament’s longstanding traditions. Andreeva’s win adds a new chapter to Roland Garros history and confirms a changing landscape among the game’s youngest champions.

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Finals French Open Grand Slam

Unexpected Roland Garros final pits Mirra Andreeva against qualifier Maja Chwalinska

Mirra Andreeva faces qualifier Maja Chwalinska in an unexpected final; tactics and nerves decide now

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The women’s final at Roland Garros arrives without any of the four players many expected to contend. The tournament’s top four — Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff — did not reach the semifinals, leaving room for two first-time major finalists to meet.

Mirra Andreeva arrived as a dark horse. At 19 she has long been a mix of talent and volatility: capable of sublime form but not yet proven across a full Grand Slam run. In Paris she has found a new level. Since the fourth round Andreeva has leaned on a powerful serve and extended groundstrokes, combining pace, depth, spin and net clearance to construct a near-impenetrable baseline position. In her last two matches she steamrolled Sorana Cirstea and Marta Kostyuk, arriving in the title match in dominant form.

Across the net stands Maja Chwalinska, a qualifier ranked 114th who until this run was scarcely on many radars. The 24-year-old, 5-foot-5, with a loopy, underpowered serve, took attention after beating Zheng Qinwen and Elise Mertens by identical 6-4, 6-0 scores. She has also been noted for a moment earlier in the season when she placed an ice bag on Iga Swiatek’s head. Chwalinska admitted the run has been a surprise. “It’s definitely a big surprise for me, and I didn’t expect it,” she said after reaching the quarterfinals. Reflecting on her semifinal, she added, “I honestly don’t know what was going on in my head,” and described her reaction as shock.

The matchup will be a first meeting and the first major final for both players. They share baseline instincts, two-handed backhands and a reliance on topspin, but their methods diverge. Andreeva presses with relentless power and consistency; Chwalinska relies on variation — high loopy balls, side-spinning slice, sudden backhand drops and precise passing shots — to create openings. Andreeva acknowledged the novelty: “It’s going to be very entertaining, very interesting, as well, because obviously I have never played against her.”

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Two questions loom: will nerves influence either player on Chatrier, and can Chwalinska’s loops and chops and drops disrupt Andreeva’s current groove? The answers will determine who lifts the unexpected trophy.

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