Anna Kalinskaya’s Roland Garros campaign has come to an end.
Maja Chwalinska, the world number 114, defeated Kalinskaya 7-6, 6-3 on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Chwalinska has become only the second qualifier to reach the Roland Garros semi-finals in the Open Era, following Nadia Podoroska in 2020.
For Kalinskaya, Wednesday’s result will be a bitter pill to swallow; she had the opportunity to qualify for her first Grand Slam semi-final, yet could not defeat a player ranked outside of the top 100.
Anne Keothavong and Johanna Konta reacted to Kalinskaya’s defeat in the immediate aftermath of Wednesday’s match, with Konta in particular expressing concern about the Russian’s attitude.
Johanna Konta criticises Anna Kalinskaya’s attitude during her loss to Maja Chwalinska
Speaking on TNT Sports’ live broadcast, Anne Keothavong began her analysis of Wednesday’s match by praising Chwalinska; who will play Aryna Sabalenka in the next round.
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The former British number one praised Chwalinska’s composure during the contest and her ability to handle the windy conditions on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Keothavong then turned her attention towards Anna Kalinskaya, expressing concern regarding the Russian’s demeanour.
“I don’t know about you Jo, but I’m a little disappointed by Anna Kalinskaya’s demeanour and performance,” Keothavong stated.
“I expected more from her, given the stage of the competition we’re at. She’s playing for a semi-final spot in a Slam.”
Keothavong’s comments were built upon by Johanna Konta [pictured below], who did not hold back when analysing Kalinskaya’s performance.
“I agree, but I think that is kind of been her achilles heel,” the 2017 Miami Open champion said. “That is something that we have gotten used to seeing from her a little bit.
“I do think Kalinskaya has this unfortunate habit of getting quite negative. I think also not willing to accept the challenge.
“And that’s why I felt really good about Kalinskaya at 5-1 in that first set, 5-3 in that first set, where she did save set points and she got it to that tiebreak.
“However, when she didn’t then convert that tiebreak, I felt like she almost reverted back to ‘why isn’t it coming? Why isn’t it coming easy for me?’
“And she does enjoy having a bit of a disagreement with her coach,” the Briton then added. “And that seems to be something that she does fairly regularly.
“That instance there [broadcasted on TNT], she was really complaining about ‘what should I do? My opponent’s hitting the ball so slow. Do you want me to just push the ball?'”
Maja Chwalinska’s run to the Roland Garros semi-finals
It has truly been a magnificent fortnight for Maja Chwalinska in the French capital.
The Pole began her campaign in Paris by winning three consecutive qualifying matches, beating home favourites Alice Rame and Carole Monnet, and Dutch player Suzan Lamens.
Chwalinska continued to impress in the first round of the main draw, beating Olympic champion Qinwen Zheng 6-4, 6-0 on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Victories against Elise Mertens, Maria Sakkari, Diane Parry and Anna Kalinskaya have followed.
Remarkably, the 24-year-old has lost just one set so far at the event.
It seems likely that Chwalinska will play world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-finals.
Maja Chwalinska’s Roland Garros run so far
- Qualifying first round: beat Alice Rame 6-0, 6-3
- Qualifying second round: beat Carole Monnet 6-0, 6-1
- Qualifying third round: beat Suzan Lammens 7-6, 7-5
- First round: beat Qinwen Zheng 6-4, 6-0
- Second round: beat Elise Mertens 6-4, 6-0
- Third round: beat Maria Sakkari 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
- Fourth round: beat Diane Parry 6-3, 6-2
- Quarter-finals: beat Anna Kalinskaya 7-6, 6-3
Sabalenka and Chwalinska have never contested a match on the WTA Tour.
