Crowned heads swept away, the Roland-Garros final will celebrate, this Saturday, an unprecedented Grand Slam winner. And a fourteenth champion out of the twenty major tournaments played since 2016 ... To succeed in Paris to the Spanish Garbine Muguruza (2016), to the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko (2017), to the Romanian Simona Halep (2018), to the Australian Ashleigh Barty (2019) and the Polish Iga Swiatek (2020), the Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (29 years old; 31st world) and the Czech Barbora Krejcikova (25 years old; 33rd world) will battle it out. Without landmarks. They have never met and have never played in a Grand Slam final. Illustrations of a stunning tournament.
The Czech, in the women's doubles final with her compatriot Katerina Siniakova (against the American Bethanie Mattek-Sand and the Polish Iga Swiatek), will try to become the first since Mary Pierce (in 2000) to achieve the double at Roland Garros. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova being able, for her part, to win the third Russian title in ten years in Paris (after the success of Maria Sharapova in 2012 and 2014).
Before discovering the summit, Barbora Krejcikova (with a very classic, complete, relaxed game) admits: “
I never imagined that I would reach the final of a Grand Slam. I can not believe it. I always wanted to play big tournaments, formidable opponents, the last round. It's still something I wanted to achieve, but it seemed out of reach. It took me a long time. Now is the right time, this is the right timing, especially mentally. I feel like I have everything I need, because I have reached the maturity I need, I enjoy things. After what I've been through with this pandemic and everything ... I'm a little overwhelmed with emotions, it's hard to describe how I'm feeling.
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Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (winner of three Grand Slam titles among juniors) recounts, between amazement and ambition, her Cinderella tournament, the unexpected final during her 52nd Grand Slam tournament, she who had never passed the quarterfinal stage of final (reached six times, including one at Roland Garros in… 2011: "
It was a very long, particular journey. There were ups and downs. It was difficult. I did not expect to be in the final… I've been thinking about it since I was a junior, since I was a kid, since I started tennis. The ultimate goal has been in my head forever. I had a lot of doubts. It was like pieces of the puzzle that did not fit together.
"Roland-Garros will roll out the red carpet of discoveries ...