It took less than a minute for the shenanigans on a crammed Court Philippe-Chatrier to begin. While Lois Boisson and Mirra Andreeva feathered their first forehands of the pre-match warm-up, the French crowd cleared their throats with a forceful rendition of La Marseillaise. The message was clear: no matter how the match unfolded, they would be there with her until the end.
All 15,000 of them were there to witness and encourage the extension of one of the most unexpected breakthrough runs in the history of tennis. Boisson, a French wildcard ranked No 361 and competing in her first French Open, continued her incredible journey through the draw by toppling the sixth seed Andreeva 7-6 (6), 6-3 to reach the semi-finals.
She will next face Coco Gauff, the number two seed, on Thursday after the American held her nerve after a difficult start to defeat the Australian Open champion Madison Keys 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-1.
Before she took her first steps on the clay courts at Roland Garros as a main draw entrant 10 days ago, Boisson had never defeated a player ranked inside the top 90 or even faced a top-50 opponent. The 22-year-old had just one tour level win, a match in Rouen two months ago, which generated significant attention after her British opponent, Harriet Dart, claimed she had body odour.
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Despite her complete lack of experience at the highest level of her sport, Boisson is now the lowest-ranked Grand Slam semi-finalist in 40 years and just the third player since 1980 to reach the semi-final at her first major tournament after Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati.
Boisson entered the tournament as the 24th highest ranked tennis player in France – she will leave Paris as the new French number one.
“I think every kid who plays tennis has the dream to win a Slam,” said Boisson. “More for a French player to win Roland Garros, for sure. It’s a dream. For sure I will go for the dream, because my dream is to win it, not to be in the semi-final. So I will try to do my best for it.”
Although underdog stories come easily, there has never been anything like this. One year ago, Boisson was granted a French Open main draw wild card after a few encouraging tournaments on the lower level ITF circuit. A week before the biggest occasion of her life, Boisson tore her anterior cruciate ligament at a small warm-up tournament in Paris. Six painful months of rehabilitation followed.
One year later, having made positive steps in her few tournaments back, the 22 year-old was granted another shot at the French Open with a wildcard. She had already seized the moment with astounding vigour and self-belief, beating four quality players en route to the quarter-finals, including a delirious three-set win over the number three seed Jessica Pegula. However, Andreeva posed a completely different challenge. One of the most special young talents to emerge in recent years, the 18-year-old established herself as a genuine title contender this year.
Despite the French crowd’s desperation to insert itself in the match, Andreeva controlled the early exchanges, outsmarting Boisson with her superior court sense and well-timed drop shots while lasering down-the-line backhands at will. Andreeva took a 5-3 lead and held a set point on Boisson’s serve.
Throughout this week, Boisson has shown beyond doubt that she is a talented player with a distinct, tricky game. She pairs her wicked, heavy topspin forehand with a potent serve, excellent athleticism and ample variation, including a sweet feel on her drop shots.
As Boisson settled into the match, she began to inflict damage on Andreeva with her first serve and heavy topspin forehand. With every successful point, the crowd further enveloped the match.
“It’s normal that [the crowd] would support a French player, so I knew that it’s going to be like this,” said Andreeva. “I think that in the first set I managed it pretty well. I didn’t really pay attention to that, but with nerves and with pressure, it became a little harder. But, anyway, I think that I can learn from this, so nothing more I can say for now.”
Under suffocating pressure from a formidable opponent, her own ambitions and a bloodthirsty audience that jubilantly cheered every point she lost, Andreeva fell apart. Her forehand disintegrated as she served for the set at 5-4, then she began to struggle with her serve. As Andreeva’s composure eventually crumbled, Boisson played with courage and determination in the biggest moment of her career to close out another unforgettable victory.
“I don’t think it’s a miracle,” said Boisson. “For sure, I have a little bit of luck also, but I think it’s just the hard work that I put since I started playing tennis and also last year with my rehab and everything. It’s just result of hard work. Nothing else.” – Guardian
