PARIS — As Iga Świątek grasped the trophy after winning her second French Open title in two years, the skies opened, but for the previous 68 minutes, she provided all the thunder and lightning. In a thoroughly dominating performance, the No. 1 seed lived up to her billing, beating Coco Gauff, 6-1, 6-3 in a much-anticipated final. This marked the 35th straight win, dating back to February, and the sixth consecutive title for Świątek, yet another indication that she is simply at another plane from the rest of the field.
Jean-Francois Badias/AP
Świątek came in today shouldering all the pressure. She was the one with the win streak. She was the higher seed. She was the older player and the favorite. And to say she met the moment is like saying gas is expensive—it’s a comic understatement.
Świątek jumped off to a 4-0 lead before Gauff even got on the board and closed out the first set 6–1. After losing the first two games of the second set, Świątek reset and won six of the next seven games. Gauff might be the most formidable server in the women's game, but Świątek broke her five times. When Świątek won in 2020, it was a thoroughly dominating tournament, she gave up only 28 games; here, in 2022, she gave up 33 and only lost one set.
It’s hard to believe that when Świątek took over the No. 1 ranking from Ash Barty in February, there was smirks that she got the spot by default and was an unworthy champion. Since then, the 21-year-old has not only gone undefeated, but players have made no inroads against her game. She’s a terrific offensive player, not least her down the line backhand, but she also defends as well as anyone. She can play up. She can play back. On Saturday, Świątek won the French Open for the second time and now goes to Wimbledon where she was once the junior champion—and she’ll be the favorite there, too.
Jean-Francois Badias/AP
Sadly, this was a disappointing end for Gauff—thought it’s not really an end, as she comes back to play the doubles final tomorrow. For six rounds, the 18-year-old American was a real star of the tournament, as she won a half dozen matches without dropping a set and revealed herself to be both a complete player and a complete person. Today, though, she couldn’t overcome her nerves and couldn’t overcome the opponent. Immediately after the match, she dissolved into tears. But there’s no question that she’ll go one round deeper sometime soon.
The show now goes to Wimbledon, where the Russians won’t be playing, but Gauff will. As will Świątek, the best player women’s tennis has seen in a long time.
