Neither the eighth seed Barty nor 19-year-old Vondrousova, have ever been in a Grand Slam final before
Saturday 8 June 2019 18:04, UK
Ashleigh Barty and Marketa Vondrousova will meet in the French Open final on Saturday and one will secure their first ever Grand Slam title.
If Vondrousova, who knocked out the British No 1 Johanna Konta in the semi-final, is victorious then she will become the first teenager to win the women's competition at Roland Garros in 22 years.
Barty, who is the eighth seed, is the first Australian woman to play in the French Open final since Samantha Stosur did so nine years ago.
Neither player had ever reached a Grand Slam semi-final prior to this tournament, let alone a final, but both battled well to create this unlikely contest for the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen.
The duo's respective semi-final matches were contrasting as Barty was embroiled in an unbelievable encounter with 17-year-old Amanda Anisimova, while Vondrousova beat Konta won in straight sets.
Barty made a roaring start against Anisimova and won 17 of the first 18 points. After just 12 minutes of tennis, she had created a 5-0 lead however lost the first set from there.
After trailing 0-3 in the second she then had to turn things around again to win the set. The drama continued as the Australian fell behind by a break in the decider before eventually closing it out 6-7 (7-4) 6-3 6-3.
"The occasion... the conditions... it was pretty brutal out there," commented Barty after her semi-final.
"I'm just proud of myself the way I was able to fight and scrap and hang in there and find a way when I kind of threw away that first set. It's an amazing opportunity."
Barty found the pressures that come with tennis too much to handle in her teenage years and decided to step away from the sport for a period of time. She turned her attentions to playing professional cricket but returned three years ago.
On Monday, regardless of the result in the final, she will climb into the world's top three and if she prevails then she will become the world number two.
"It's been an incredible journey the last three years," she said. "It's been an incredible journey the last two weeks.
"I feel like I have played some really good tennis, some consistent tennis. Although that level wasn't there today for the whole match necessarily, it was there when I needed it."
Vondrousova reached her first major final in a slightly more straightforward fashion but did have to handle some tricky moments herself.
Konta had three set-points in the first, points that she let slip, and led 5-3 in the second but the teenager held her nerve and had the answers required.
Vondrousova has now won 27 out of her last 33 matches and on clay and no other player in the women's game has a better record than her in the time since the Australian Open.
"Best week of my life so far," said the 19-year-old. "I'm just very happy with everything."
The teenager's elation is understandable as she has not dropped a set en route to the final day and has flourished in unfamiliar surroundings.
After a draw that has seen top seeds fall and seasoned Grand Slam finalists be knocked out of contention, it's time for two new finalists to take to the largest stage of them all and see if they can make their dreams a reality.
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