French Open 2025 live updates: Women’s final latest as Coco Gauff challenges Aryna Sabalenka today – The New York Times

Tennis
French Open
live
Updated 9m ago
Coco Gauff (2) faces Aryna Sabalenka (1) in the 2025 French Open women's singles final at Roland Garros today.
American 21-year-old Gauff, whose sole major came after beating Sabalenka in the 2023 U.S. Open, faces a tough test in the Belarusian, the world No. 1 and top seed famed for her powerful hitting.
Sabalenka, 27, is looking for her fourth major and her first on the red clay in Paris.
GO FURTHER
French Open recap: Why was the roof closed for Carlos Alcaraz vs. Lorenzo Musetti?
Only in sports, and probably only in tennis, would a Black girl raised in Florida and a White girl raised in 5,500 miles away in Minsk grow up to collide in Paris, chasing one another’s dreams.
And here they are, Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka, coming into today's French Open final as the two best players in the world. Both are the hunter and the hunted. Both have a hammer lock on what the other one wants a piece of.
And roughly two hours of tennis between the most aggressive force and the most premier counterweight in the women’s game will serve as the next marker for whether either one can make any headway on their missions.
Gauff’s mission may be more straightforward. Winning this tennis match and the French Open is an end in itself. Sabalenka is No. 1; Gauff would like to be there. Winning Saturday would be a start in closing the gap.
Sabalenka’s mission is more complicated, because a win could push her toward something less tangible: Gauff’s level of stardom. In that arena, the gap between the players is as wide, if not wider, than the chasm atop the WTA rankings.
GO FURTHER
Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka’s French Open final: A shared chase for each other’s dreams
Advertisement
In the women’s final, Sabalenka is favored against Gauff with -210 odds on BetMGM. Sabalenka’s run to this final continues her tear through Grand Slams in the last three calendar years.
The 27-year-old has made the semifinals in nine of her last 10 Grand Slam appearances. This is her sixth final in the last nine. However, she has never won the French Open, and Gauff has beaten her in a Slam final before.
Gauff knocked off Sabalenka in a shocking upset in the 2023 U.S. Open final 2-6, 6-3, 6-2. This is Gauff’s first final since her triumph in New York. The 21-year-old made a French Open final in 2022, when she lost in straight sets against Iga Świątek.
Of Sabalenka’s six Grand Slam finals, four have been against Americans. In addition to the meetings with Gauff, she beat Jessica Pegula at the U.S. Open in 2024 and lost against Madison Keys in Australia earlier this year.
Though Sabalenka is a clear betting favorite, the head-to-head history shows an even matchup. In 10 meetings, each has won five times, although Sabalenka has won three of the past four meetings. They’re also even in a pair of meetings on clay.
GO FURTHER
French Open finals odds: Aryna Sabalenka favored vs. Coco Gauff, Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz tight
Interestingly, the weather forecast shows a risk of thundery rain showers in the French capital, plus a medium breeze.
So I imagine the roof will be on Philippe-Chatrier, just to be safe.
Which will affect the match conditions for both players in a fairly significant way…
Good morning to those of you in the States. Get yourself a brew. Good afternoon to those of you in the UK. And good evening to those of you following from the end of the day, wherever you are in the world.
There has been some play today: Yui Kamiji beating Aniek Van Koot 6-2, 6-2, in the women's wheelchair singles final. Austrian Lilli Tagger is currently facing Brit Hannah Klugman (8) in the juniors women's singles final on Simonne-Mathieu.
…at least, that is the case for Aryna Sabalenka, who contests the final today.
She has been working hard on a routine — both on match days and on days off — without letting that fall into superstition or obsession at the French Open.
That plus a willingness to obliterate any opponent in her path on the way to what she hopes will be her first Roland Garros title, could well set her up for success. Here's what she told TNT Sports about her preparations:
💬 “I’ll have the same breakfast on the day when I’m playing. Avocado on toast with two fried eggs.
“I don’t care (who I play next). Whoever makes it to the semis means they are playing good tennis. I want to compete and I want to win.”
Below is the path that Aryna Sabalenka took to reach the French Open semifinals:
Advertisement
If Thursday’s French Open semifinal between Iga Świątek and Aryna Sabalenka felt like a rare women’s tennis heavyweight battle at a Grand Slam, that’s because it was.
Świątek and Sabalenka have been the two most dominant WTA players of this decade, winning eight slams between them. But it’s not just Świątek and Sabalenka who have met relatively rarely at the slams.
Add Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina, the other two most successful players over the past few years, and there have been just 10 Grand Slam matches between the four since the start of 2022.
This matters not because Świątek, Sabalenka, Gauff and Rybakina should be asked to match the ridiculous standards of that famed quartet.
It matters because the greatest tennis rivalries, played out at the Grand Slams, define and elevate the sport around the world. Today's final is a brilliant chance for a rivalry to play out on the highest stage.
GO FURTHER
Swiatek, Sabalenka and the Big Three: The best tennis rivalries elevate the players and the sport
Coco Gauff’s path to the French Open quarterfinals has been nothing short of dominant, with the American yet to drop a set.
A tiebreak against Marie Bouzková in the third round is the closest anyone has come to taking her to three sets so far.
As Novak Djokovic left Philippe-Chatrier he put down his bags and waved to every corner of the stadium, before leaning down and touching the clay.
Asked in his news conference last night whether this was an indication this was his last ever French Open, the three-time champion here said: “This could have been the last match ever I played here, so I don't know.
“That's why I was a bit more emotional even in the end. But if this was the farewell match of the Roland Garros for me in my career, it was a wonderful one in terms of the atmosphere and what I got from the crowd.”
I asked him whether this was an all-options-are-on-the-table situation, or if he's leaning towards it probably being his last, to which he replied: “I said it could have been my last match. I didn't say it was. So I don't know right now.
“12 months at this point in my career is quite a long time. Do I wish to play more? Yes, I do. But will I be able to play in 12 months' time here again? I don't know. I don't know. So, yeah, I mean, that's all I can say for the moment.”
Djokovic went on to say that he plans to play this year's Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, but those are the only events he's really thinking about right now.
Glad you asked.
It was a phenomenal day of action to whet the appetite for today's final.
First, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz (2) reached the showpiece after Lorenzo Musetti (8) retired with an injury when down 6-4, 6-7(3), 0-6, 0-2 on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
Then in the evening session, top seed Jannik Sinner beat seven-time finalist Novak Djokovic (6) in straight sets, 6-4, 7-5, 7-6(3) to make his first French Open final.
Catch up on everything that happened, play by play, with our live coverage here.
GO FURTHER
French Open recap: Why was the roof closed for Carlos Alcaraz vs. Lorenzo Musetti?
We would love to hear from you.
Whether it’s a question you have always wanted answered, a comment, or an observation… We welcome it all.
Send us an email at: live@theathletic.com — and we’ll feature the best of what we receive in this live coverage.
Don’t be shy. Get typing.
Advertisement
Good question.
In the men's doubles final, on Philippe-Chatrier at 10.10. a.m. ET, 7.10 a.m. PT, 3.10 p.m. BST, Horacio Zeballos and Marcel Granollers (5) face Brits Neal Skupski and Joe Salisbury (8).
The former duo have a combined age of 79!
The women's doubles final is tomorrow (Sunday), between Russians Mirra Andreeva/Diana Shnaider (4) and Italian duo Jasmine Paolini/Sara Errani (2).
The mixed doubles was wrapped up on Thursday as Evan King and Taylor Townsend of the United States were beaten in straight sets by Errani and Andrea Vavassori, 6-4, 6-2.
On the main show court, Philippe-Chatrier, it's Coco Gauff vs. Aryna Sabalenka at 9am ET, 2pm BST.
The men's singles final is tomorrow (Sunday).
Of course, that match will be live on The Athletic too — we'll see you there and then!
It’s a busy time in the sports world — and there is no let up in the scheduling as spring becomes summer.
It is NBA Finals time as Game 1 of the season-defining series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers lived up to the hype on Thursday night.
Over in the soccer world, the European club seasons might be over but we have the Club World Cup and Women’s Euros to look forward to.
Plus the Formula One and MLB schedules are continuing and Wimbledon isn’t far away either.
The Athletic is your one-stop shop to follow all those sports and more, with our industry leading coverage.
So what are you waiting for? Sign up on an exclusive offer here.
Roland Garros, Paris, France
The stadium complex is in the 16th arrondissement (district) of the French capital city.
Court Philippe-Chatrier, Suzanne-Lenglen, and Simonne-Mathieu are the show courts here.
It’s the only major played on clay and is a staple of the tennis calendar every year.
Fancy tuning in to the action live on TV, alongside our live coverage? Here are your options:
Advertisement
The action starts at 3 p.m. local time (CEST) in France, which is 2 p.m. BST in the UK, 9 a.m. ET and 6 a.m. PT on the east and west coast of the United States, respectively.
Bonjour! Hello and welcome one and all to The Athletic, where we are live from the 2025 French Open.
Today at Roland Garros we will be treated to the fabulous spectacle of the women's singles final between American Coco Gauff and the world's highest ranked player Aryna Sabalenka, the top two seeds.
It promises to be a brilliantly entertaining occasion here in Paris, France.
So don't go anywhere! Let us take you through all the build-up to the showpiece.

source