By Julien Pretot
PARIS, June 3 (Reuters) - Ukrainian pride will once again be on the line when Marta Kostyuk faces Russia's Mirra Andreeva in the semi-finals of a wide-open women's draw at Roland Garros on Thursday.
After world number one Aryna Sabalenka crashed out in the quarter-finals, Andreeva, the eighth seed, is now the highest-ranked player left in the tournament.
The other semi-final will be contested by Andreeva's Russian compatriot Diana Shnaider and Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska.
The third
meeting between 15th seed Kostyuk and Andreeva will again unfold against a backdrop of political tension rooted in Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, with no handshake expected at the net either before or after the match.
The war has long cast a shadow over encounters between Ukrainian players and their Russian or Belarusian opponents on the WTA Tour, and Kostyuk has emerged as one of the most outspoken voices on the issue.
Andreeva has declined to discuss it, and while Kostyuk said she would be able to set the issue aside on court, the 23-year-old has criticised Russian players.
“I wish there was some more clear stance on what’s going on, especially when your country is killing other people," Kostyuk, who twice played in Paris this year the morning after Russian air strikes on Kyiv, said.
Kostyuk has won both of their previous meetings this year, including one on clay, each in straight sets.
The second semi-final will feature two left-handed players on a dream run on the Parisian clay.
Poland's Chwalinska is the second qualifier in the professional era that began in 1968 to make it to the last four here while Shnaider fought back from the brink to topple Sabalenka.
After winning eight matches in a row, Chwalinska is running high on confidence, and adrenaline.
"Obviously I'm a bit tired, but that's normal. It's a Grand Slam, so I feel like the adrenaline is very high," she said.
"I can feel terrible, but then I just step on the court and it's a different story. Doesn't matter how I feel. It's going to be okay ."
Both players have faced each other in a semi-final before, but it was in a lower-tier event in Istanbul four years ago with the Russian coming out on top in straight sets and Thursday's meeting will be another affair.
"She's a very tricky player, so I'm not surprised that she's good. Sometimes, it just takes time. She's very tricky with the drop shots and slices. Obviously she's a lefty. So it's going to be a big switch for me for tomorrow's match," said Shnaider, who faced a different challenge against the hard-hitting Sabalenka .
"I'm expecting a huge fight tomorrow. I feel like both of us are going to be leaving it all out tomorrow with huge opportunity in front of us. So I feel like it's gonna be a great match."
FRENCH OPEN ORDER OF PLAY ON THURSDAY (prefix number denotes seeding):
COURT PHILIPPE CHATRIER
Not before 1300 GMT
15-Marta Kostyuk (Ukraine) v 8-Mirra Andreeva
25-Diana Shnaider (Russia) v Maja Chwalinska (Poland)
(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
