Mirra Andreeva Advances to French Open Final After Defeating Marta Kostyuk

Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva has secured her maiden Grand Slam final berth, delivering a commanding performance against Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk at the French Open. The 19-year-old, who was a runner-up in the 2024 semifinals, dominated the match with a decisive 6-1, 6-3 scoreline. She now awaits the winner of the other semifinal between 25th-seeded compatriot Diana Shnaider and Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska for Saturday’s championship match.

Andreeva’s achievement places her among the youngest players to reach the Roland Garros final in the last three decades, ranking as the fourth-youngest after Martina Hingis, Kim Clijsters, and Coco Gauff. A victory in the final would make her the third-youngest first-time Grand Slam champion of this century, trailing only Maria Sharapova and Emma Raducanu.

The geopolitical tensions surrounding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022, cast a shadow over the event. Kostyuk has been vocal in her opposition to the war and has previously criticized Russian athletes for not taking a stronger stance. Adhering to the position held by Ukrainian competitors for the past four years, Kostyuk refused to take a pre-match photograph with Andreeva and did not shake hands with her opponent following the match.

Source: BBC News Generated at: 2026-06-04 14:44:07 UTC