Qualifier Chwalinska reaches semi-finals to continue dream French Open run

ByHarry Poole

BBC Sport journalist

Qualifier Maja Chwalinska continued her imagination French Open tally arsenic she bushed Anna Kalinskaya to scope her archetypal Grand Slam semi-final.

The satellite fig 114 was near open-mouthed with daze aft completing a superb 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 triumph implicit 22nd effect Kalinskaya connected a blustery Paris day.

Poland's Chwalinska is the 2nd qualifier aft Nadia Podoroska successful 2020 to scope the singles semi-finals astatine Roland Garros.

She is lone the sixth qualifier successful the Open epoch to scope the women's singles semi-finals astatine a Grand Slam.

Only 1 - Britain's Emma Raducanu astatine the 2021 US Open - went connected to triumph the title.

World fig 1 Aryna Sabalenka could await Chwalinska the past four, with the Belarusian taking connected Russian Diana Shnaider aboriginal connected Wednesday.

"I honestly don't cognize what is going on," Chwalinska told the crowd.

"I cognize I repetition myself, but each lucifer present is benignant of brainsick for me."

It is simply a singular tally for Chwalinska, who arrived astatine the tourney with conscionable 2 victories successful WTA Tour-level main-draw matches nether her belt.

Her sole Grand Slam lucifer triumph came astatine Wimbledon successful 2022 - but Chwalinska present finds herself connected an eight-match winning streak connected the Parisian clay, having dropped conscionable 1 acceptable connected the way.

Everything appears to person clicked successful spot for a subordinate who erstwhile feared she mightiness person near the athletics for good.

Chwalinska struggled with slump for 2 years and took an indefinite interruption from tennis aft losing successful the archetypal circular of qualifying astatine Wimbledon successful 2021.

She did not cognize whether she would instrumentality astatine that point, having mislaid her enjoyment of grooming and competing.

With the enactment of the radical astir her, the openness of chap players specified arsenic Naomi Osaka successful speaking astir their intelligence health, and little attempts to bask different sports, Chwalinska recovered herself gradually gravitating backmost to the tennis court.

It has each led her to this infinitesimal of a archetypal large semi-final - and a imaginable David-versus-Goliath showdown with rubric favourite Sabalenka.

In Paris, Chwalinska has played with infectious state and joyful creativity, beating 2 seeded players and Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen on the way.

She kept her composure good against Kalinskaya, archetypal having to reset aft letting a 5-1 pb gaffe successful the opener, earlier reeling disconnected 5 consecutive points from 3-2 down successful the resulting tie-break to instrumentality the lead.

She past held her nervus successful the second, recovering from being breached arsenic she tried to service retired triumph earlier clinching her archetypal lucifer constituent connected Kalinskaya's serve.

"I was decidedly nervous. I americium stressed, of course, but I effort to absorption connected my occupation and my games," Chwalinska said.

"I americium not focusing connected confidence. I americium playing against the champion players successful the world, truthful I volition not comparison myself to them."

Whatever happens successful the semi-finals, Chwalinska is present projected to leap up the rankings and into the world's apical 30.

By reaching the semi-finals, she has besides secured prize wealth amounting to £647,700 - much than doubling her vocation full net of £642,400 successful the abstraction of 10 days.