Swiatek extends winning run, to face Gauff in French Open final

PARIS: Iga Swiatek romped into her second French Open final on Thursday and will face Coco Gauff for the title after the teenager became the youngest Grand Slam finalist since 2004.

World No. 1 Swiatek, the 2020 Roland Garros champion, cruised to a dominant 6-2, 6-1 semifinal victory over Russian Daria Kasatkina after just 64 minutes on Court Philippe Chatrier.

That extended her unbeaten streak to 34 matches.

Swiatek will equal Venus Williams’ record for the longest women’s winning run since 2000 if she beats 18-year-old Gauff, who brushed aside Martina Trevisan 6-3, 6-1, on Saturday.

“I’m so grateful. It’s easier to play matches with this kind of support,” Swiatek, who won 10 of the last 11 games, said in her on-court interview.

“It’s surprising this week how much they’re supporting me.

“I try to treat every match in the same way because when I think about how it’s the biggest match of the season so far, it stresses me out.”

It will be the 21-year-old’s second major final, as she looks to win a sixth consecutive WTA title.

The Polish star has stormed up the rankings this season, moving from world No.  7 to the summit during her remarkable run.

Swiatek hammered 22 winners past her opponent and she has still lost only one set in the tournament, against Chinese teenager Zheng Qinwen in the fourth round.

Kasatkina, the 20th seed, won her first clash with Swiatek on the Eastbourne grass last year, but has lost all four of their meetings in 2022 in straight sets, without winning more than five games in a match.

After a quick opening hold from Swiatek, both players struggled on serve and traded breaks.

But Kasatkina was still finding it difficult to live with the consistent groundstrokes of her opponent and