French Open: Maja Chwalińska continues miracle run, advances to final with win over Diana Shnaider

Maja Chwalińska came into the 2026 French Open as the 114th-ranked women's player who had never advanced past the qualifying rounds at the event. On Saturday, she'll have a chance to win it all.

Chwalińska continued her miraculous run at Roland-Garros on Thursday, taking down No. 25 seed Diana Shnaider in straight sets (7-6, 6-4)to advance to Chwalińska's first-ever Grand Slam final.

It was clear from the start fans were in for a tremendous match. Both Chwalińska and Shnaider appeared evenly matched in the first set. When Chwalińska pulled out to a 3-1 lead, Shnaider stormed back, winning the next two games to tie things up. From that point, the pair traded off games, eventually sending the match to a tiebreak.

Shnaider appeared in control early in the tiebreak, jumping to a 4-2 lead. But Chwalińska answered back emphatically, winning the next five points to take the first set 7-6.

Chwalińska and Shnaider kept up that same intensity in the second set. After Chwalińska won the first game, Shnaider answered back with a win in the second. The pair then once again traded wins over the next six games, keeping things tied up 4-4.

In the ninth game, Chwalińska finally broke that streak. She broke Shnaider's serve to take a 5-4 lead, putting herself a game away from a trip to the final. While Shnaider took the first point in the next game, Chwalińska rallied, taking four straight points to win the game and the match.

After the match, Chwalińska was speechless when asked about her performance at the event.

With the win, Chwalińska will advance to her first-ever Grand Slam final. Prior to the 2026 French Open, Chwalińska had advanced past the qualifying stage at a Grand Slam just two other times. She picked up her first — and only — Grand Slam win at Wimbledon in 2022 and lost in the first round of the Australian Open in 2025.

It's impossible to overstate the unexpected nature of Chwalińska's performance at the 2026 French Open. Only one other player has ever reached the singles final at a Grand Slam while coming out of qualifiers in the Open Era. That would be Emma Raducanu, who went on to win the 2021 US Open. Chwalińska will have a chance to match that feat Saturday.

In order to do so, she'll have to get past No. 8 seed Mirra Andreeva, who took down Marta Kostyuk early Thursday. Andreeva, like Chwalińska, has never played in a Grand Slam final before.

The 2026 French Open final should be a new experience for both players. In addition to never reaching a final at a Grand Slam before, Chwalińska and Andreeva have never faced each other in a singles match.