Why there will not be a handshake in French Open semi-final between Andreeva and Kostyuk with possible Russia-Ukraine final causing tension in Paris

The women's semi-finals at the French Open will be played out today. In what should be a spectacular day of dramatic and high stakes tennis may be overshadowed by the constant events ongoing in the Russian-Ukraine war and the tension Ukrainians feel with Russian and Belarusian players.

This brings us nicely onto the first semi-final of the day between Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk and Mirra Andreeva. These two have been the standout players of the clay swing. Kostyuk is yet to lose after clinching two titles at Rouen and Madrid and is set to compete in her first ever Grand Slam semi-final after dumping out the likes of four-time champion Iga Swiatek and fellow countrywoman Elina Svitolina along the way.

Andreeva has also been brilliant throughout. She was a late entry into the tournament at Linz but was able to get over the line against Anastasia Potapova to win the title. Semi-final in Stuttgart was followed by the clash against Kostyuk in the final of Madrid. Her Rome Open venture ended slightly early to the hands of eventual runner-up Coco Gauff but she has avoided the upsets that other top seeds have encountered to reach the semi-final of Roland Garros for the second time.

These two playing each other should be a highly anticipated match solely focused on each other's brilliant skillset on the court. While the match is certainly highly anticipated, the tennis may not be the vocal point in all of this.

Kostyuk has been one of the more prominent voices when trying to speak out about the Ukraine war, letting her unfiltered feelings and emotions take over. She was in tears before and after her first round win after unveiling some harrowing news that occurred right before her 2026 Roland Garros campaign kicked off.

"This morning, 100 meters from my parent’s house, the missile destroyed the building. It was a very difficult morning," she stated after her first round win. "My biggest example is Ukrainian people. I woke up in the morning today and I looked at all these people who woke up and kept living their live, kept helping people who are in need. I knew a lot of Ukrainian flags would be here today and a lot of Ukrainian people would come out and support. My friends from Ukraine came as well. Very happy to have them here.”

After her historic quarter-final matchup against Svitolina, the war was again the topic on the tip of her tongue. "We had a very difficult night again in Ukraine, especially in Kyiv. So many people died, and I want to dedicate this match to the Ukrainian people and to their resilience. Thank you."

Ukrainian tennis players have not been too sympathetic to Russian players since the war starting, not shaking hands with them after matches, not posing with them in pictures and even not acknowledging them in speeches.

This is exactly what happened in the Madrid Open final. Andreeva knew the drill by now after being booed out of Melbourne Park after losing to Svitolina earlier this year with the crowd seemingly not understanding the mutual agreement occurring.

"It doesn't matter who I play. I really try to play against the ball that is coming at me," Andreeva commented, deflecting any discussion about the war that comes her way. "It doesn't matter to me who I'm playing against, so I'm trying to really focus on the game and on the gameplan that I have to use on the court."

All of this discourse may not stop there. If Kostyuk does get the better of Andreeva in a repeat of that Madrid Open final, she could be faced with the prospect of Russian Diana Shnaider in the final of Roland Garros. After defeating the world number one Aryna Sabalenka, she is coming up against qualifier Maja Chwalinska in the second semi-final.

One person who has regularly called out Shnaider is Oleksandra Oliynykova. Another Ukrainian who is very outspoken about the war in her country, regularly at press conferences or on social media saying her piece and attacking Russians. She has become a very prominent figure since her breakthrough in 2026. In the case of Shnaider, her inclusion in the Gazprom exhibition event was not met with much sympathy by Oliynykova.

“What is serious here is the fact that this match is going to happen, because Diana Shnaider is a person who participated in a Gazprom tournament. If you want to see, this is a picture,” she said, showing some photos on her phone. “This is her in the Gazprom tournament. Gazprom is a company financing war crimes, and playing in tournaments that finance camps for kids.

“I think it’s the same as playing in Nazi Germany for Gestapo officers in a tournament organised by a company that built Auschwitz. There is no difference for me. And everybody is silent about what this person did. It’s crazy. She also liked publications from Russian propagandists. Here are some screenshots. I can send them later if you want.”

Shnaider defended herself in the following press conference. "I'm traveling all year round, I'm not seeing my family or my friends, and I have the only one opportunity to play in front of my family and in front of my friends, just to spend a little more time at home,” she said. “I see it as an opportunity just to show some good tennis for my family, and I mean it's the only opportunity, so I gotta use it."

What is for certain is that this is a wide open draw with a new Grand Slam champion set to be crowned on Saturday. First up Andreeva and Kostyuk will take centre stage on Court Philippe Chatrier before Shnaider and the Pole Chwalinska battle it out for the second final spot in Paris.