Jelena Ostapenko, who has yet to win a Tour title, is one away from picking up her first grand slam crown after a 7-6, 3-6, 6-3 victory against Timea Bacsinszky in an epic semi-final at the French Open on Thursday.

Hammering groundstrokes with the fearlessness of youth, the 20-year-old bashed 50 winners to get over the line after 2hr 24min and become the first Latvian to reach a major singles final.

Bacsinszky, a semi-finalist two years ago, has the greater experience and more variety but that can count for little when you are being bludgeoned.

The Swiss threw everything at her younger opponent and, after leveling the match and then breaking back for 3-3 in the decider, it looked like she had the momentum to go on and win it.

However, Ostapenko never wavered from her all-or-nothing approach and she regained her hot streak in the last three games to become the first unseeded woman to reach the final since 1983.

Culled from Guardian