Eight-time Grand Slam champion Andre Agassi stepped up with a heartfelt message for Maja Chwalinska after her Roland Garros final defeat, reminding the Polish qualifier what her historic performance really means to the sport. Despite falling at the final hurdle against Mira Andreeva, the 24-year-old had plenty of reasons to smile after completing the tournament of her life.

Speaking to the Polish player during his appearance at the TNT Sports studio, where Agassi was working as an analyst, the former world number one took the opportunity to cheer him on. When Chwalinska emotionally admitted she didn’t know what she’d done to deserve such an overwhelming wave of support, the American legend offered some powerful words of consolation to help chronicle her accomplishments.

“Okay, if you don’t know why you deserve it, let me help you understand. You qualified and made it to the finals, which is one of the toughest challenges in all of our sports.”

“Don’t get distracted by those articles. Don’t get distracted by wins and losses. Keep improving yourself because you are a gift to this game.”

Agassi’s praise holds incredible significance, given that Chwalinska entered Paris ranked 114th and completely rewrote the record books by winning nine consecutive matches in three weeks. After reaching the championship match, She became the first qualifier in history to reach the women’s singles final at Roland Garros, and only the second female qualifier to do so at a Grand Slam in the entire Open era, along with Emma Raducanu.

How was Chwalinska’s French Open 2026?

Chwalinska’s historic journey in Paris was no less than a fairy tale, as she had to win three consecutive qualifying matches to enter the main draw. From there, she transformed into a giant-killer, scoring stunning straight-set upsets over elite players such as Qianwen Zheng and Elise Mertens, before a thrilling three-set battle against world number nine Maria Sakkari. She then defeated Dianne Perry, Anna Kalinskaya and Diana Schneider to book her dream place in the final.

The championship match on Court Philippe-Chatrier against eighth-seeded Russian teenager Mira Andreeva proved a step too far. Chvalinska fought hard early and even took a 3-2 lead in the first set, but Andreeva handled the windy conditions beautifully and recovered from nine consecutive games to win 6-3, 6-2. Despite the final heartbreak, Chwalinska’s career is forever changed; His world ranking is projected to rise 93 places to a career-high No. 21, guaranteeing him direct entry into the world’s biggest tournament without the need to play qualifiers again.

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