French Open semi-finals: Swiatek v Podoroska and Kenin v Kvitova – live!

Here is Kevin Mitchell’s report.

That’s all from me today. Thanks a lot for following along and we will be back tomorrow for a very exciting men’s semi-finals day as Novak Djokovic faces Stefanos Tsitsipas and Diego Schwartzman takes on Rafael Nadal.

After the men’s semi-finals, Iga Swiatek and Sofia Kenin will return on Saturday for the women’s final. While Swiatek has played at an incredible level throughout the tournament, Kenin is getting the hang of bringing her best tennis in the big moments of big matches and she will look to neutralise Swiatek’s aggression and creativity. It will hopefully be the first of many big meetings to come.

Here is Iga Swiatek on her surprise run to the final without dropping a set.

“Actually it’s hard to believe. I think it’s going to hit me, like, after the tournament. Right now I’m just living the dream. I just want to focus on the other matches, on doubles. I’m going to enjoy everything after. Right now I’m still on adrenaline, so yeah, it’s hard to believe that.

I know winning final, it’s going to be a tough match. It’s still long way because I’m going to play against more experienced players. They’ve been in a situation like that. Again, I’m going to be, like, an underdog, if you could say something about that, to the finalist. Yeah, it’s going to be a tough match. Yeah, I’m going to just stay focused.”

Swiatek only recently finished high school, which is something she had been combining with her tennis travels for a long time. She said in the past that she was viewing her next few years of tennis as a gap year before she decided whether or not to enrol in university if she wasn’t as successful as she hoped. So far, she is exceeding expectations:

“Well, right now it’s going to be hard to make a decision to go back to studying because I feel like really I can achieve big things. I just want to focus on that. But really I’m only 19, so a lot can change during few years. We going to see.

Maybe I’m going to be, like, hungry for knowledge or anything. Really I’m not going to make decision right now. Right now it would be hard for me to study in this tournament and after. So I’m just going to focus on doing tennis, tennis-related stuff, as good as I can. I’m just going to deal with it later.

But really I think if I’m going to be in a few finals of Grand Slams, it would be, like, impossible to study and playing that kind of tennis consistently. I’m just going to see how the situation develops. “

This year’s Roland Garros final will pit two rising stars against each other as 19 year-old Iga Swiatek faces 21 year-old Sofia Kenin. It seems clear that a new generation is rising on the WTA, and rising fast. Here are the last 8 women’s slam champions and their ages at the time of their victory:

US Open 2018: Naomi Osaka (20 years old)

Australian Open 2019: Naomi Osaka (21 years old)

French Open 2019: Ashleigh Barty (23 years old)

Wimbledon 2019: Simona Halep (27 years old)

US Open 2019: Bianca Andreescu (19 years old)

Australian Open 2020: Sofia Kenin (21 years old)

US Open 2020: Naomi Osaka (22 years old)

French Open 2020: Sofia Kenin (21 years old) or Iga Swiatek (19 years old)

Ashleigh Barty (pandemic) Naomi Osaka (injury/pandemic), Bianca Andreescu (injury) all skipped Roland Garros this year. If they can all remain healthy and compete at the same time from 2021 onwards, the future is very exciting.

Sofia Kenin on whether her slam title gives her more confidence:

Yeah, I’ve done it in Australia. I’ve had really tough matches over the past two weeks and I’m so excited to be in the final. I think it’s just incredible. I’m just gonna enjoy this moment today and then start preparing for the final tomorrow.

After her loud cheering during the match, just a small fistpump from Kenin as she won. There is more work to be done.

Although she lost in straight sets and the windy conditions were not to her liking, Kvitova had her chances. From the end of the first set, she pushed Kenin to deuce in 4 of 5 service games, generating numerous break points, but almost every single time it was Kenin who stepped up and was gutsy with her the back to the wall.

Kenin is not the most spectacular player out there and others receive more hype, even now that she is a slam champion. Some hit harder than her and there are even more impressive athletes, but despite how underrated she remains, she is very good. The 21 year-old’s combination of guts and intelligence is going to win her many matches. Now she is in another slam final.

After failing to serve out the match the first time, such an impressive recovery from Kenin to see out another huge win. Few players play the big points as well as she does, and that is why she is in her second slam final of the year.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 *6-5 Petra Kvitova

Incredibly, Kenin breaks straight back and she will serve for the match again. Desperate, nervy times for both players, but surprisingly it was Kenin who was willing to step up and take the ball on. She opened the game by lasering a couple of backhands to lead 0-30. After missing a complete sitter at 0-30, she immediately responded by forcing an error with a deep backhand down the middle. On her first game point, she ground down Kvitova’s backhand wing until it elicited an error.

Kvitova serve let her down when she really needed it there and Kenin made her pay.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 5-5* Petra Kvitova

Kvitova breaks back! Kenin was clearly nervous and the wind also picked up. Under those conditions, Kvitova smartly just made sure that she put returns in court down the middle, forcing Kenin to take the initiative. Kenin responded with three errors to immediately fall down 0-40.

Kenin saved the first break point with a big crosscourt backhand that just kissed the baseline. She then sent another backhand into the net. If Kvitova can hold, this could be significant.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 *5-4 Petra Kvitova

Kvitova forces Kenin to serve out the match, but only just. Things were not looking good at 15-30, but Kvitova found an excellent angle on her lefty sliding serve to produce a service winner. At 30-30, she sent Kenin wide with a backhand crosscourt, forcing a forehand error. She finished with a big forehand down-the-line winner.

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Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 5-3* Petra Kvitova

Kenin moves to within a game of her first Roland Garros final with an easy hold to 15, a rarity in this set. She sealed it with two successive big serves, including an ace on game point, to march on. There was, of course, another cry of “c’mon”.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 *4-3 Petra Kvitova

Kvitova responded really well there, flitting through a love hold with some big serving. The question is whether she can stand up in one of these tight games, as Kenin so often has, and find a way back into this match.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 4-2* Petra Kvitova

Kenin saves four break points to consolidate her break. Kenin initially led 40-15, pummeling the ball to save both game points on her terms. At deuce, Kvitova produced perhaps her shot of the match, a whistling forehand down the line winner off a very good slice from Kenin to generate break point.

Kenin saved the first break point with a solid unreturned first serve. After double faulting at deuce, Kenin saved the second break point with a huge crosscourt backhand winner after another good first serve. She saved the third with an excellent forehand down the line winner. She saved the fourth break point by chasing down a Kvitova drop-shot and curling a sliced forehand past her. Finally, Kenin produced two bold point-ending backhands from deuce to secure the game.

Incredible work from Kenin, really. There have been so many tight games in this set and Kenin has won almost every one.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 *3-2 Petra Kvitova

Kenin breaks, and she did so with some incredible ad-court returning. After Kvitova moved up 40-30, Kenin saved the break point by producing another mischievous drop shot winner off a second serve, with Kvitova not even bothering to chase it down.

Kenin saved a second game point with an excellent winning backhand cross-court return. After a netted Kvitova backhand brought up a break point, Kenin found another beautiful angled return. This time Kvitova managed to reach the ball and land her forehand, but Kenin calmly curled her forehand into the open court.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 2-2* Petra Kvitova

Kenin saves break point to survive another very tough hold and stop Kvitova from building any momentum. After moving to break point at 30-40 with a searing inside-out forehand winner, once again Kenin found her first serve when needed and Kvitova missed three returns long in the tight deuce game that followed. Not for the first or last ime, Kenin dismounted with a loud cry of ‘c’mon’ after another Kvitova forehand error.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 *1-2 Petra Kvitova

A good effort from Kvitova, who was victim of a great passing shot from Kenin at 30-15, but she immediately returned to the net on the very next point, forcing a Kenin backhand error with a vicious crosscourt forehand approach shot.

Kvitova missed a backhand at 40-30, but she found two big first serves from deuce. After a welcome service winner, she landed a typical serve-forehand 1-2 punch, placing her down-the-line forehand into the open court.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 1-1* Petra Kvitova

The key stat of the match so far is on Kenin’s serve. She has served at 79% so far and she won only 1/7 points behind her second serve in the first set. She needs to keep that level of serving up.

Second set: Sofia Kenin 6-4 *0-1 Petra Kvitova

Kvitova opens with a quick, drama-free hold to 15, winning four successive points from 0-15 down. She served well and easily found her forehand behind her serve. More service games like that would be very good for her.

Winners and unforced errors:

• Sofia Kenin – 7 winners, 7 unforced errors
• Petra Kvitova – 13 winners, 12 unforced errors

Both players can take heart of that set. Kvitova’s level has improved and she can hope to bounce back at the beginning of set two, while Kenin is one set away.

Kvitova played much better in the second half of the set, but not good enough in Kenin’s final service games. Some great ball striking from Kvitova pulled her to 0-30. After Kvitova missed a backhand return, Kenin came up with a moment of inspiration in a long, intense point at 15-30, throwing in an excellent drop shot winner on the 15th stroke.

After a few too many errors from Kvitova, Kenin took the first set on her second set point with an unreturned first serve.

First set: Sofia Kenin *5-4 Petra Kvitova

This continues to be a big improvement from Kvitova, who breezes through a quick love hold with some great serving, putting pressure on Kenin to serve out the first set.

First set: Sofia Kenin 5-3* Petra Kvitova

Kvitova is finally starting to crush the ball off the ground and find her timing, but somehow Kenin survives a break point to hold. After sending a forehand long off an average Kvitova drop shot, from 30-40 down Kenin produced an unreturned serve and an ace on consecutive points. Kvitova finally landed a great return on Kenin’s game point, pushing Kenin far behind the baseline, but she sent her forehand long.

First set: Sofia Kenin *4-3 Petra Kvitova

Kvitova opened this service game with a couple of poor errors once again, but from 15-30 down she produced three excellent first serves, including two successive aces, to recover and hold. Two games in a row for Kvitova.

First set: Sofia Kenin 4-2* Petra Kvitova

Kvitova had to change something, so she removed her bandana at the change of ends. It seems to have worked. She burst to 0-40 after slipping a backhand past Kenin at the net, nailing a crosscourt forehand winner and then forcing an error from Kenin with an excellent deep return to her feet. Great ballstriking.

After two break points passed her by, she broke on an incredible point. After chasing down a drop shot and intelligently wrong-footing Kenin by pushing her response into the corner down-the-line, Kenin’s response seemed to be falling into the net. Instead, it rolled onto the tape and dropped over. Kvitova, who clearly thought the point was over, quickly responded with a counter drop shot good enough to finish the point. We will see if she can settle down now.

First set: Sofia Kenin *4-1 Petra Kvitova

As well as Kenin has started, Kvitova has looked nervous after the first game and this match is moving fast. At 0-15, Kvitova had an easy backhand to put away, but she sent it straight at Kenin who eventually slotted a backhand past Kvitova as she stood stranded at the net. After an excellent return winner from Kenin at 15-30, Kvitova closed off the game with a backhand error that was closer to the back fence than the baseline. This will not do.

First set: Sofia Kenin 3-1* Petra Kvitova

This has been a supreme start from Kenin, who is serving very well and has landed all but one first serves. At 15-15, she slammed down the first ace of the match. Then she cracked open the court with a lovely angled forehand, moving Kvitova from side to side before placing a cross-court forehand winner. She closed it off at 40-15 with a big unreturned serve. Three games in a row for Kenin.

First set: Sofia Kenin *2-1 Petra Kvitova

Kenin makes the first move with a break to 15. Surprisingly, it was the American who provided the first exclamation mark of the match, daringly stepping inside the baseline to return a Kvitova second serve and shocking Kvitova with a drop shot return winner. After a couple of loose errors from Kvitova, Kenin landed a great down-the-line forehand return to force another error. Kvitova is still trying to find her range out there.

First set: Sofia Kenin 1-1* Petra Kvitova

Kenin also registers a quick hold herself, finding 6/6 first serves in the opening game and a couple of free points behind it. She ended with a sweet backhand down the line that clipped the back of the line, forcing an error front he Czech. Both players seem to be easing into the match on return and assessing the conditions.