On the other hand, unseeded Ostapenko became the first Latvian to reach a Grand Slam final after registering a 7-6 (7/4), 3-6, 6-3 win over Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland in another semi-final clash.
Ostapenko celebrated her 20th birthday by crushing Bacsinszky's hopes with a nerve-jangling 7-6 (7-4) 3-6 6-3 victory, which included a total of 16 breaks of serve on a sweltering Court Philippe-Chatrier.
"I'm really happy, I love to be here", Ostapenko, the youngest woman to reach the French Open final since Ana Ivanovic in 2007, said after former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli and the crowd serenaded her with a chorus of "Happy Birthday". "I'm really happy to be in the final, especially on my birthday".
"Still, I think I'm able to play better tennis", Pliskova said, "which, probably, I'm going to need" against Halep. Halep has won four of her previous five matches against Pliskova, all on hard courts.
In the mixed doubles final, Rohan Bopanna and Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada lifted their maiden Grand Slam trophies as they overcame the opening set loss and a break deficit against French pair Robert Farah and Anna-Lena Groenefeld to win 2-6, 6-2, 12-10 on the match tie-break.
The third-seeded Halep said the key to the victory over Svitolina was her determination to keep fighting when the match looked lost.
With Bacsinszky serving at 3-5 Ostapenko, coiled like a spring, brought up two match points with an unstoppable backhand return that cleaned the baseline then smote a rasping forehand return victor that left her opponent flat-footed. "That helped me win today". Her leaded forehand is her biggest weapon but she hits victor from all over the court, all the time.
Virat Kohli's 'strong reservations' about Anil Kumble leaves CAC in fix
Fearing more controversy, Dravid had also excused himself from the U-19 team selection meeting for the England tour. However, as per a BCCI source, Dravid will to leave his Indian Premier League ( IPL ) contract.
The Romanian came into the tournament as the favourite despite concerns over an ankle injury and knows a great opportunity awaits her.
It's the first time a Canadian woman wins a Grand Slam title.
Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko had quite the day, and quite the last two weeks.
Ostapenko may have lost in the first round last year and failed to make it out of qualifying a year earlier in Paris but that was largely down to her inexperience. That would be followed by the women's semis: Timea Bacsinszky against Jelena Ostapenko and then Simona Halep vs Karolina Pliskova. "I think that's what made these matches more special". "Is she mature enough to play Bacsinszky and not just close her eyes and blaze away?"
"I don't think we can ever see another guy like this", Kuerten said. She has come from a set behind on three separate occasions against some of the game's biggest names - such as Samantha Stosur and Caroline Wozniacki.
Pliskova however turned it around, breaking for 4-2 in the second and yelling out in celebration when thwarting three break points in the ensuing game.
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