PARIS -- Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva reached her first Grand Slam final by beating Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-1, 6-3 at the French Open on Thursday.
Andreeva, 19, converted her first match point when serving for the match. There was no postmatch handshake between them, and Kostyuk walked off quickly, turning only to wave and blow kisses to the crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier, where some were fans draped in Ukrainian flags.
"I am happy that I am in my first-ever Grand Slam final. All of these feelings combined, it is amazing," Andreeva said. "I just told myself, no matter what happens, I am going to fight and give my best. With this kind of mindset, I ended up winning."
The atmosphere beforehand was somewhat tense as the players had separate photos taken as they each stood next to two children on their respective side of the net.
Usually the players pose for a single photo standing right next to each other by the net.
Kostyuk and countrywoman Oleksandra Oliynykova have spoken out during the tournament about the impact Russia's invasion of Ukraine is having on their country.
Later Thursday, the other semifinal featured left-handed players Diana Shnaider of Russia and Maja Chwalinska of Poland. Chwalinska came through three qualifying rounds and had never previously been beyond the second round at a major.
In the earlier match, Andreeva saved three break points at 0-40 in her opening service game, then raced to a 4-0 lead with a flurry of blistering forehand winners. There was a big cheer when Kostyuk held serve in the fifth game, but the Ukrainian then handed Andreeva the first set when her backhand hit the net.
Roof open and then closed
The semifinal began shortly after 3 p.m. amid sunny conditions and with an open roof, like on Wednesday when beaten quarterfinalists Aryna Sabalenka and Anna Kalinskaya complained of swirling wind on Chatrier and said the roof should have been closed.
It was closed toward the end of the second set of Thursday's semi, offering Kostyuk better conditions for her clay-court game. She broke back to trail 4-3, prompting huge applause and loud chants of "Marta, Marta."
But she dropped her next service game and the comeback ended almost as quickly as it began, along with Kostyuk's 16-match winning streak on clay.
"Obviously, [Kostyuk] has had an amazing season. Until this match, she has not lost a match on clay," Andreeva said. "She is an amazing player and a very tough opponent."
Mixed doubles
Top-seeded Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori of Italy won the mixed doubles final earlier Thursday, beating Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and American Evan King 4-6, 6-3, 10-4.
The men's singles final Sunday also is guaranteed to feature an Italian player, with Flavio Cobolli facing Matteo Arnaldi on Friday in the first Grand Slam semifinal for both players.