Maja Chwalinska makes records after reaching French Open final
What's the story
Polish tennis player Maja Chwalinska has made history by becoming the first-ever qualifier to reach a French Open final. The 24-year-old achieved this feat by defeating 25th seed Diana Shnaider in straight sets, 7-6(4), 6-4, on Thursday. Chwalinska's remarkable journey at Roland Garros started with her just hoping to get through qualifying rounds but has now turned into an incredible fairytale run on Parisian clay.
Unprecedented success
Nine consecutive match wins for Chwalinska
Chwalinska, who entered the tournament as world number 114, has now won nine consecutive matches with just one set dropped in 18 played. Before this tournament, she had never beaten a top-50 player. Now, she has four such victories under her belt. After her win over Shnaider, an overwhelmed Chwalinska said "I mean it feels like a dream, honestly," and expressed happiness at her achievement.
Records
Massive records made by Chwalinska
As per Opta, Chwalinska is the third player in the Open Era to reach her maiden WTA level final in a Major after Venus Williams (US Open 1997) and Emma Raducanu (US Open 2021). Among players to debut at Roland Garros in the Open Era, Chwalinska is the third to reach the women's singles final at the event at their maiden main draw appearance after Evonne Goolagong (1971) and Chris Evert (1973).
Records (2)
More records for Chwalinska
Chwalinska is the fourth women's singles left-handed finalist at Roland Garros since 1990 after Monica Seles, Lucie Safarova and Marketa Vondrousova (the last to achieve the feat in 2019). Chwalinska became the second qualifier in the Open Era to reach the singles final in a Major after Raducanu at the US Open 2021, males included.