Four players will lock horns at Roland Garros on Thursday for a place in the French Open final. Top seed Simona Halep will take on Garbine Muguruza and Sloane Stephens faces compatriot Madison Keys.
At stake for the eventual winner of the tournament will be 2000 ranking points as well as €2.2M in prize money. Aside from the trophy, which is called the Suzanne-Lenglen cup, there is also a series of milestones taking place and up for grabs.
The world No.1 ranking will be decided
In the first women’s match on Court Philippe Chatrier, Halep and Muguruza will play for the world No.1 ranking as well as a place in the final. Currently Halep is the world’s top player with 7270 points (1260 points more than Muguruza). However, she is defending a wealth of points from reaching last year’s final.
Should Halep win, she would match her current points tally at 7270 (increasing to 7970 if she claims the title). On the other hand, should Muguruza be triumphant. She will lead the rankings with at least 7070 points and Halep would be left with 6750.
Both players have headed the WTA rankings during their careers. Halep is the first ever Romanian No.1 in the Open Era. Meanwhile, Muguruza is the second from Spain after Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.
The all-American meeting
Stephens’ meeting with Keys marks a special milestone for American tennis. Despite the two previously clashing in the final of the US Open, which Stephens won in straight sets, it will be the first all-American women’s semi-final since 2002.
The match will only be the second time since 1990 that two American players have faced each other for a place in the French Open final. In 2002 Serena Williams defeated Jennifer Capriati in three sets. During that year Williams went on to defeat sister Venus to claim the title. Making in only the fourth (and so far last) all-American French Open women’s final in the Open Era.
Two players on course for a perfect run
Both Garbine Muguruza and Madison Keys are still on course to lifting the Roland Garros trophy without dropping a set. An accomplishment that hasn’t been achieved since Justine Henin’s run back in 2007.
Heading into Thursday, Muguruza has dropped just 22 games in the tournament. Scoring wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova, Fiona Ferro, Sam Stosur, Lesia Tsurenko (retirement) and Maria Sharapova. In comparison, Keys has dropped 33 games. Getting the better of Sascha Vickery, Caroline Dolehide, Naomi Osaka, Mihaela Buzarnescu and Yulia Putintseva.
Roger Federer was the last player to win a grand slam title without dropping a set at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships.
Stephens’ 2 milestones
A win on Thursday will move 25-year-old Stephens into the top 5 for the first time in her career. To date, her best position was ninth that was first achieved in the first week of April this year. Other than the Williams sisters, the last American woman to feature in the top 5 was Lindsay Davenport in 2006. Coincidentally Davenport is in Paris mentoring Keys, Stephens’ upcoming opponent.
Also up for grabs for the US Open champion is the chance to surpass the $10 million mark in prize money earnings. Should she get the better of keys, Stephens would be only the 44th female player in the open era to achieve the milestone and the eighth from America.
Who has the better record?
It can be quite subjective to decide which of the four semifinalists are the best. They all have their own credentials to justify their places. So to make it easier, here is how they rank in the following areas :-
Most French Open wins
1. Muguruza 24-4
2. Halep 22-8
3. Stephens 19-6
4. Keys 12-5
Most WTA titles
1. Halep 16
2. Muguruza 6
=2. Stephens 6
3. Keys 3
Most wins on the tour
1. Halep 437
2. Muguruza 337
3. Stephens 252
4. Keys 237
Number of grand slam semifinal appearances
1. Halep 6
2. Muguruza 4
3. Stephens 3
3. Keys 3
Note: All numbers include this year’s French Open
