British tennis talent Hannah Klugman has reached the French Open girls` singles final, a remarkable achievement that makes her the first British female to do so in nearly five decades. The last British player to reach this stage was Sue Barker, 49 years ago.
The 16-year-old schoolgirl from Kingston-upon-Thames secured her place in Saturday`s final after a challenging three-set victory in the semi-finals, defeating Bulgaria`s Rositsa Dencheva with a score of 1-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Historically, Michelle Tyler, now 66, won the girls` title in Paris in 1976, the same year that Sue Barker famously claimed the senior women`s title at Roland Garros.
Looking ahead to the final, where she will face 17-year-old Austrian Lilli Tagger, Klugman admitted to being surprised by her success. “I’m just a bit shocked to be honest,” she said.
Reflecting on her semi-final match, she added, “I wasn’t playing my best and I found it tough to get myself into the match. I felt like as soon as I did that I was in a good space and I thought I could do well if I got into the match.”
Klugman credited her mental resilience for her performance throughout the week. “I think I’ve been mentally very good this week,” she stated. “I think I’m staying calm in big moments and also just trying to take it in.”
She emphasized the importance of enjoying the moment, recognizing the rarity of such an opportunity. “These moments don’t happen a lot, so trying to enjoy it is a big part,” she said.
Her coach and physio reinforced this message, telling her, “Go out there and enjoy it. Because you never know if you’ll be in the spot again.”
In other British success at Roland Garros, Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski reached the final of the men’s doubles event. They won their semi-final match against Americans Christian Harrison and Evan King 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 in a deciding-set tie-break. They will play Marcel Granollers of Spain and Horacio Zeballos of Argentina in the final, aiming to become the first British pair to win the men`s doubles title here since Fred Perry and Pat Hughes in 1933.
Additionally, Alfie Hewett advanced to the wheelchair singles final by defeating Argentine Gustavo Fernández 6-4, 4-6, 7-6. Hewett is vying for his fourth French Open title, and his first since 2021, against the top seed Tokito Oda.
