French Open: The 9 greatest women’s singles finals – ranked!

The French Open women’s final is set for 2024.

Iga Swiatek and Jasmine Paolini will battle it out for Roland Garros glory, with Swiatek aiming to complete a ‘threepeat’ of wins in Paris, and Paolini looking for her first major.

You can never predict just how good (or not) a final will be, but hopes will be high that the pair can emulate some of the very best French Open finals of all time.

We’ve looked back through the record books, and have ranked nine of the very best women’s singles finals.

9) 2001: Jennifer Capriati def Kim Clijsters 1-6, 6-4, 12-10

One of the longest-ever finals, the quality wavered between Capriati and Clijsters at times, but that only contributed to one of the most dramatic French Open finals.

In her first major final, teenager Clijsters dominated the first set and was just two points away from victory multiple times in the decider.

But, having claimed her first major Down Under in January, Capriati summoned all her experience to edge over the line and claim her sole Roland Garros title.

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8) 2023: Iga Swiatek def Karolina Muchova 6-2, 5-7, 6-4

Perhaps the best WTA Slam final of this decade so far, Muchova came so close to pulling off an epic upset in an enthralling contest 12 months ago.

Up a set and a break, it looked as if Swiatek would dominate proceedings, but the Czech stunned the Chatrier crowd with a second-set fightback.

And the unseeded Muchova was a break in the third set, only for Swiatek to show her champion qualities and break in the final game for a third title.

7) 1987: Steffi Graf def Martina Navratilova 6-4, 4-6, 8-6

A significant match in many ways, with Graf defeating Navratilova to win the first of her 22 Grand Slam singles titles.

The German was just 17 years old in her first major final but showed no signs of nerves early on, taking the opening set before fellow all-time great Navratilova stormed back to force a decider.

Experience-wise, Navratilova would have been a favourite heading into the third set, but it was Graf who snuck away with victory – and the first of six titles in Paris.

6) 1999: Steffi Graf def Martina Hingis 4-6, 7-5, 6-2

World No 1 Hingis was a significant favourite for this match, with Graf not winning a Slam in over two years, and the Swiss star raced into a set and a break lead.

But, rattled by a controversial line call in the second set, Hingis was unable to serve out the match at 6-4, 5-4 up, and Graf bounced back to force a decider.

With Hingis wavering mentally, the German produced a stunning deciding set to claim her final major title.

5) 1989: Arantxa Sanchez Vicario def Steffi Graf 7-6(6), 3-6, 7-5

The final that perhaps got away from Graf, but one that handed a 17-year-old Sanchez Vicario the first of her four Grand Slam singles victories.

After edging a nailbiting first set in a tense tiebreak, it looked as if the Spaniard would taste defeat after Graf took the second set more convincingly, and then held a 5-3 lead in the third.

But the world No 1 – who had won five straight majors – was unable to serve it out, and Sanchez Vicario stunned her opponent by winning four straight games to claim the first of three Roland Garros crowns.

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4) 2014: Maria Sharapova def Simona Halep 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4

The legacy of this final may be slightly clouded by the ensuing bans both faced, but there is no denying that Sharapova and Halep snapped a run of pretty forgettable finals with a modern-day classic.

2012 champion Sharapova edged a tight first set but was forced into a deciding set for the first time in a major final, as Halep battled her way to taking the second set in a tiebreak – having trailed in the breaker.

The final set ebbed and flowed but the Russian broke at 4-4, and then closed out a three-hour battle to win her fifth and final major.

3) 1996: Steffi Graf def Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6-3, 6-7(4), 10-8

The last of the trilogy of finals between Graf and Sanchez Vicario was perhaps the best, with the two greats delivering an epic spectacle on Court Philippe Chatrier.

Graf looked set for a solid victory after easing to the opening set, but Sanchez Vicario showed her trademark fighting spirit to force a decider.

The third set was one of the most epic in French Open history, but ultimately it was Graf who was able to defend her title after a thrilling battle.

2) 1985: Chris Evert def Martina Navratilova 6-3, 6-7(4), 7-5

Evert and Navratilova played each other 80 times, but few of their contests were as good as this.

The greatest female clay courter of all time, Evert took the opening set against Navratilova, a slight turn-up for the books considering how Navratilova had dominated their recent meetings.

The defending champion rallied in a superb second set to force a decider but, in a final considering one of the best WTA matches of all time, Evert regained the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen with a late surge.

1) 1992: Monica Seles def Steffi Graf 6-2, 3-6, 10-8

The greatest rivalry of the early 1990s culminated in one of the most famed tennis matches, Seles edging Graf for a third straight title in Paris.

The Yugoslavian had the edge in their recent matches and the first set suggested she would continue to do so, but Graf responded in kind with a fantastic second set.

There was so little between the two in the deciding set – one of the best individual sets ever – but ultimately the reigning No 1 held firm at the very end to claim a memorable triumph.