Experience reigns supreme at Roland Garros: Sánchez and Ustero put a stop to Calvo and Fernández’s fairy tale

The finals of this Paris Major are underway, and as is customary, the day kicked off with the match pitting the brand-new pairing of Martina Calvo and Claudia Fernández – the tournament’s it-girls – against Ari Sanchez and Andrea Ustero, who were determined to clip their wings.

Upset and a Major

Very few people could have predicted this victory, let alone this scoreline. Given yesterday’s result and what Claudia and Martina have been achieving since they teamed up – not to mention the fact that this is a Major – the buzz surrounding this couple is sky-high: after just four tournaments together, they’ve already reached three finals, the latest of which made them the youngest couple to reach a Major final in the entire history of the circuit, with Ustero, Fernández and Calvo all under 20 and a combined age of 86 – five years more than the previous record, held by Brea, González, Ustero and Alonso since the 2024 Dubai P1.

And speaking of clouds, the final kicked off in an atmosphere worthy of the Philippe-Chatrier: the match started late because it began to rain, until the stadium’s retractable roof was closed and play could begin.

As for the match itself, there’s little more to say: strange. Claudia and Martina started off making lots of errors, looking very stiff and overly organised – the complete opposite of what had brought them success in previous matches. On the other side of the court, Ustero was playing completely at ease and Ari was dictating the match perfectly.

And that sums up the match: if the young pair got off to a bad start, things only got worse. Sanchez and Ustero, on the other hand, couldn’t have played more comfortably: 6-2/6-0 and a third title of the season for them after Riyadh and Valencia.

The MVP is none other than: Ari Sanchez, the 29-year-old “veteran” who read the match perfectly from start to finish. For Fernández and Calvo, there is the consolation of a meteoric rise: they reached this final without ever having faced Sanchez and Ustero before, and they leave Paris with Martina Calvo securing a new career-high ranking, overtaking Sofía Araújo in eighth place.