News_What You Need to Know About the 2024 French Open Women’s Final

The 2024 French Open women’s singles final will kick off at 9:00 PM Beijing Time tonight. World No. 1 Iga Swiatek is one win away from securing her fourth French Open title and fifth Grand Slam championship. Standing in her way is 12th seed Italian Martina Trevisan. Before the battle commences, here are a few things you need to know:

What are the stakes and prize money?

As the second Grand Slam of the season, both Swiatek and Trevisan have already earned 1300 points and €1.2 million by reaching the final. The champion will receive an additional 2000 points and €2.4 million.

With her maiden Grand Slam final appearance, Trevisan is guaranteed to break into the top 10 of the WTA rankings on Monday. She would become the highest-ranked Italian since former world No. 7 Vinci, and if she wins, she would be the highest-ranked Italian since Errani reached No. 5 in 2013.

Players’ Road to the Final:

Swiatek:

First Round: 6-1 6-2 Jiang [Q]

Second Round: 7-6(1) 1-6 7-5 Osaka

Third Round: 6-4 6-2 Buzarnescu

Fourth Round: 6-0 6-0 Potapova

Quarterfinals: 6-0 6-2 Muchova [5]

Semifinals: 6-2 6-4 Gauff [3]

Trevisan:

First Round: 6-3 6-4 Sabalenka

Second Round: 6-4 7-6(6) Badosa [L]

Third Round: 6-1 3-6 6-0 Andreescu

Fourth Round: 4-6 6-0 6-1 Avanesyan

Quarterfinals: 6-2 4-6 6-4 Rybakina [4]

Semifinals: 6-3 6-2 M. Andreeva

Prior to this year, Trevisan had never made it past the second round in Paris. In fact, just 12 months ago, she was competing at a WTA 125 event in Makarska, Croatia. Since then, she has continued to make strides in her breakthrough season, capturing the biggest title of her career at the WTA 1000 Dubai earlier this year.

What milestones can be achieved in the final?

At 23 years old, Swiatek is aiming for her third consecutive Roland Garros title. This would be her fifth Grand Slam trophy, following victories at Roland Garros in 2020, 2022, and 2023, and the 2022 US Open. She would also become the most decorated player under the age of 30 on the ATP or WTA Tour in terms of major titles. Furthermore, Swiatek could become the first player born in the 1990s, male or female, to win five Grand Slams.

At 28, Trevisan is making her first Grand Slam final appearance and seeking her second title of the season and third overall. Prior to this year, her best result on clay was a runner-up finish at the 2022 WTA 250 event in Palermo.

Trevisan is the first Italian woman to reach a Grand Slam final since Vinci at the 2015 US Open and the first Italian to contest the French Open final since her doubles partner Errani in 2012. She aims to become the first Italian to defeat a world No. 1 in a WTA final and, should she triumph, Italy’s first women’s singles Grand Slam champion since Pennetta won the 2015 US Open and first French Open champion since Schiavone in 2010.

How do they approach the final?

Trevisan: “My dream was to be a professional tennis player, but I never dreamed of being No. 1, a Grand Slam champion – never dreamed about that, it felt too far. Maybe never dreamed about top 10, but I hoped, but I never really believed that I could do it.”

“I started step by step, started believing in some goals that were more reachable for me. Because I think dreams are important, but I started step by step trying to set some goals for myself.”

“Seeing Jannik (Sinner) say when he was 15 that his dream was to be No. 1, it was unbelievable for me, something different. I never dreamed about being in a Grand Slam final, and now I’m here. I’m happy, but it’s a different feeling. I feel like a different person.”

“Iga is an incredible player. So young, so many achievements, so many Grand Slams. Here, she won three times. She’s getting better week by week, which is not easy. So I respect her a lot, but my goal is to step on the court on Saturday, try to enjoy the match, enjoy the moment, try to play a good match, and perform well on court.”

Swiatek: “I played with Martina a long time ago, so I need to be prepared tactically, see where she is right now, because for sure it’s her best season, so she must have changed something.”