[Source: BBC Sport]

For the first time in seven years, the best two women’s players in the world will meet in a Grand Slam final when Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff face off at the French Open.

A new women’s singles champion will be crowned either way, with world number one Sabalenka seeking a fourth major singles title and second-ranked Gauff a second.

Gauff, the US Open champion in 2023, finished runner-up in Paris three years ago, while two-time Australian Open winner and last year’s New York champion Sabalenka is in her first Roland Garros final.

The pair have five wins apiece from 10 previous meetings before going head-to-head on Court Philippe Chatrier, where the winner will take home 2.5m euros (£2.1m) and 2,000 ranking points.

Sabalenka and Gauff overcame two very different challenges in their respective semi-finals.

Underlining her position as title favourite, Sabalenka ended four-time champion Iga Swiatek’s 26-match run with an impressive three-set victory.

Gauff, meanwhile, was up against a partisan crowd but efficiently ended French wildcard Lois Boisson’s fairytale run in straight sets.

Sabalenka continues to show remarkable consistency at the sport’s highest level, with this her third successive major singles final.

The 27-year-old is the first woman to achieve that feat since the great Serena Williams nine years ago.

Sabalenka has competed in 10 tournaments this year, reaching seven finals, and she leads the WTA Tour with 40 wins in 46 matches.

Gauff, meanwhile, continues to emerge as a force to be reckoned with on clay.

The 21-year-old, bidding for her first title of the season, is the youngest woman to reach the finals at Madrid, Rome, and the French Open in the same year.

With her run to the Roland Garros final, she has also become the youngest player to amass 70 wins at Grand Slam tournaments since Maria Sharapova in 2007.

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