French Open women’s semi-finals: Swiatek beats Gauff, Paolini sweeps past Andreeva – as it happened

Iga Swiatek moved closer to a third straight Roland Garros title with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Coco Gauff, while Jasmine Paolini defeated 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 6-1

All 10 of Gauff's defeats by Swiatek have been in straight sets, including the 2022 final at Roland Garros and in last year's quarter-finals. What's hard for the 20-year-old in this match-up is that for all of her strengths - her backhand, her athleticism, her mentality - she's got an iffy forehand that Swiatek can target with her own forehand, which is so powerful and top-spin heavy.

And here come the players, headphones on, as they always are. Which is a shame because they probably don't fully hear the loud reception they get from the crowd. But it's good to see that the stands are nearly full. The Parisian patrons have been a bit tardy so far this fortnight, but they don't want to be late for this one.