Preview French Open Roland Garros WTA Final | Mirra Andreeva targets maiden slam as Maja Chwalinska fairytale story set for climactic ending

As Roland Garros final lineups go, this may be up there with one of the more unlikely ones. Not in the case of Mirra Andreeva who is culminating her terrific 2026 clay swing with the possibility of a first Grand Slam title. In her way is the qualifier Maja Chwalinska who is enjoying the most brilliant and unlikely of tournaments.

A new name will be added on the trophy, that is for sure. Chwalinska is looking to become the first qualifier to win the French Open, and only the second ever to do so. The world number eight, Andreeva, has become the fourth youngest Roland Garros finalist in 30 years, adding her name to an established list of players. She will finish the tournament as the world number six and a brilliant platform to build off with grass swiftly following the conclusion of this unpredictable and fascinating tournament.

Unlike her opponent, there was a lot of expectation for Andreeva to be in this final. After failing to defend the 2000 points from her prior WTA 1000 titles, she has bounced back in fine fashion. A cooler and more composed Andreeva is now pictured on court instead of the frustrated and angry version who would lose her head.

That semi-final performance against Kostyuk was a prime example. There were times that the crowd were cheering on the Ukrainian to get back into the match as the Madrid champion got the second set back on serve. Andreeva did not flinch, realising how well she was playing and the huge advantage already amassed from the first set. She came back out and won the final two games to book her spot in a maiden Grand Slam final at just 19-years-old.

This clay swing has been dominated by upset results and the big players suffering humiliating defeats. In Madrid, Rome and Pars, there was just one final split between Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Amanda Anisimova and Victoria Mboko. Andreeva, in contrast, reached the final in Madrid and Paris, losing in the quarter-final at Foro Italico to Gauff. She has focused on the task at hand and not let any surprise results halt her progress when in the past this may have been the case.

She came into Roland Garros full of confidence. A title in Linz and a semi-final in Stuttgart before the WTA 1000 tournaments backed up just how inform she was. Fiona Ferro was taken down in straight sets before Andreeva fell behind to Marina Bassols Ribera. The qualifier has been the only person to take a set off Andreeva in this tournament with her dropping just two games after this.

Marie Bouzkova, Jil Teichmann and Sorana Cirstea were dealt with while dropping just 14 games in the process. She continued to improve through the rounds, and left the best until last as she extracted revenge on Kostyuk, giving the 23-year-old her first defeat on clay in 2026 and confirming a maiden Grand Slam final.

Before the tournament even started, many people would have no idea who Chwalinska was. Even prominent figures in the sport would have overlooked her presence after coming through qualifying. No one expected this run to occur, not even her. However, after mental health breaks and surgery, Chwalinska is a Grand Slam finalist.

It gives shades of Emma Raducanu's unlikely US Open title run back in 2021. However, the Brit had come into the tournament in decent form after reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon and only retiring due to breathing difficulties and sickness. Before Roland Garros 2026, Chwalinska had secured just one Grand Slam win at Wimbledon 2022.

She came into this tournament as the world number 114 following from retiring in the first round of a WTA 125 event in Parma. She dropped just four games in her first two qualifying matches before a tight match against Suzan Lamens went the way of the Pole in two sets. She was the eighth seed in qualifying. She could be the 14th seed in the main draw come Wimbledon, albeit qualifying may be needed once more.

Players struggled dearly against her on court, not coping well with the unpredictability in her style. It was a star-studded list of names she ticked off, beginning with Qinwen Zheng who less than two years ago won the Olympic gold medal at Roland Garros. A bagel in the second set sent her home before she executed the same 6-4, 6-0 scoreline against Elise Mertens.

Maria Sakkari was the only player to nick a set off her so far, but the Greek could not get the job done as Chwalinska powered back with a dominant comeback win. She upset the home crowd with a comfortable win against Diane Parry before downing a brace of Russians in the form of Anna Kalinskaya and the world number one slayer Diana Shnaider. The conditions were less than ideal in the quarter-final against the number 22 seed with the wind really affecting Kalinskaya. Chwalinska shrugged these off and blasted through enroute to a statement win over Andreeva's doubles partner for what is set to be an intriguing final.

As expected, these players have never met on court. Both players have momentum behind them, Andreeva from a brilliant clay swing while the fearless Chwalinska is currently on cloud nine, feeling like she can do no wrong.

Andreeva is a very aggressive baseline player with a monstrous backhand when on song. She can muster up a lot of power in which even the best players in the world on their day struggle to overcome at times. She is very mobile and able to get around the court quickly.

Her prior experience at doubles will greatly help her with coming to the net not an issue. That is something Chwalinska has regularly made players to, conjuring up tricky slices and drop shots on a regular basis that leaves players hurriedly storming around the court. She can read the game well and is able to adapt to different settings, as showed from the contrasting heat to blustery weather experienced in Paris over the prior two weeks.

Both players have a very good head on their shoulders. Andreeva's may implode at any moment, especially is the crowd side with Chwalinska in similar fashion compared to the quarter-final last year against Lois Boisson. However, there is the feel that this is a different Andreeva. One that can bottle her emotions and see the positives when things are not going her way.

Fortunately, things have been going her way. She is obviously the overwhelming favourite to win the title but can be severely hampered by Chwalinska if the 24-year-old executes her game plan. The fear that she may not find any rhythm on court similar to her Russian counterparts who already fell could be something that affects her title chances. However, if Andreeva plays the way she did against Kostyuk, it will be hard to pick out a winner other than Andreeva.