Swiatek blasts her way to fourth French Open crown

“I was almost out of the tournament in the second round, so thank you guys for staying behind my back and cheering me. It’s been a really emotional tournament, so thank you for supporting me,” she told the crowd, after being presented with the trophy by Evert and fellow legend Martina Navratilova.

For Paolini, who’d never been past the second round at any slam until this past fortnight, the sense of powerless kicked in as Swiatek, impenetrable in defence, began thrashing winners from the baseline on the attack.

Once she had been broken for 2-0 in the second set, it always seemed as if Paolini’s only hope was to avoid the embarrassment of a second-set bagel, and at 5-0 down, she soaked up huge applause from the sympathetic crowd by pulling off a forehand winner to grab just her third game.

Becoming the first woman since Serena Williams to complete the Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros clay-court treble in the same season, Swiatek wouldn’t be put off, serving out for her comprehensive victory in just 68 minutes.

“I really enjoyed playing on this court today – to play you here is the toughest challenge in this sport,” Paolini told Swiatek on court.

“These have been the best days of my life – so keep going, I’ve got the doubles final tomorrow,” added the Italian, who plays alongside compatriot Sara Errani against Coco Gauff and Katerina Siniakova on Sunday.

AAP