Jasmine Paolini

Jasmine Paolini (born 4 January 1996) is an Italian professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 4 in singles by the WTA, the joint-highest-ranked Italian woman in singles (alongside Francesca Schiavone), and No. 3 in doubles.

Paolini is a major champion in doubles at the 2025 French Open, partnering Sara Errani. Representing her country, she won an Olympic gold medal in doubles at the 2024 Paris Olympics, also with Errani. On the WTA Tour, Paolini has won three singles titles and ten in doubles, including two singles and five doubles WTA 1000 titles. She is also a three-time major finalist, contesting the singles and doubles finals of the 2024 French Open and the singles final of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships.

Paolini led Italy to the Billie Jean King Cup titles, winning the Heart Award for the 2024.

Early life

Jasmine Paolini was born in Castelnuovo di Garfagnana. Her father, Ugo, is Italian and her mother, Jacqueline, is of Ghanaian and Polish descent, originally from Łódź. When she was five years old, her father and uncle introduced her to tennis, and she started training at the Mirafiume Tennis Club in Bagni di Lucca.

When she was 15, Paolini moved to Tirrenia to train further. She has a younger brother named William who also plays tennis.

Career

Jasmine Paolini began her tennis journey as a junior player, winning her only junior title in 2013 and making her Grand Slam debut later that year at the US Open. She reached the third round in singles at both the US Open and the Australian Open in early 2014.

Paolini turned professional in the mid-2010s. In 2015, she received a wildcard to play doubles at the Italian Open. Her first big breakthrough came in 2017 when she won her first professional title at a tournament in Marseille. She made her main draw debut on the WTA Tour later that year at the Swedish Open. Over the years, Paolini has achieved many milestones, including her first WTA Tour win in 2018, reaching her first WTA quarterfinal, and breaking into the top 100 players in the world. She has won several titles in both singles and doubles, including a notable victory at the Slovenia Open in 2021.

Paolini continued to climb the rankings throughout the 2020s. She reached the top 50, earned her first top-10 win, and became the number one Italian female tennis player. In 2024, she reached the finals of both the French Open and Wimbledon, an impressive feat achieved by few women in tennis history. That same year, she won an Olympic gold medal in doubles with her partner Sara Errani. Paolini’s career has been marked by consistent performance and significant achievements, making her one of Italy’s most successful tennis players.

Playing style

Jasmine Paolini plays tennis in a lively and bold way. She is good at hitting the ball firmly from the ground and uses extra spin on her forehand shot, while keeping her backhand shots flat. Though she is not very tall, measuring 163 cm (5 ft 4 in), she is very quick and can move around the court well, which helps her stay ahead of other players.

Records

Jasmine Paolini set a record for the longest Wimbledon semifinal in 2024, lasting two hours and 51 minutes. She is tied with Francesca Schiavone as the highest-ranked Italian female player in history, reaching number 4 in the world. At 28 years old, she was the second oldest player to make her debut at the WTA Finals, after Li Na. Paolini also shares a record with Monica Seles for winning both the singles and doubles titles at the 2025 Italian Open in the same year. She and Sara Errani have won back-to-back doubles titles at the WTA 1000 Italian Open and the WTA 1000 China Open.

Main articles: Francesca Schiavone, Li Na, WTA Finals, Monica Seles, 2025 Italian Open, Sara Errani, China Open

Rivalries

Jasmine Paolini has built exciting rivalries with several top tennis players around the world. She has played against strong champions like Aryna Sabalenka, often meeting in important matches. Paolini’s best wins against Sabalenka happened on clay courts, where she feels more comfortable.

She has also faced Iga Świątek many times, with their biggest match being the 2024 French Open final. In a surprising turn, Paolini beat Świątek at the 2025 Wuhan Open, showing her skill. Paolini’s matches with Elena Rybakina have been close, and she beat Rybakina at the 2024 French Open to reach her first major semifinal.

Against Caroline Garcia, Paolini has had some great wins, including at the 2025 Qatar Ladies Open. Her rivalry with Coco Gauff reached a highlight when Paolini won the Italian Open final in front of her home crowd. She also shares a balanced rivalry with Daria Kasatkina and Ons Jabeur, with memorable matches at big tournaments.

Among Italian players, Paolini has a notable rivalry with Martina Trevisan, and their matches show the growing strength of Italian women’s tennis.

Career statistics

Jasmine Paolini has achieved many impressive results in her tennis career. She has been a finalist in two Grand Slam singles tournaments and has won a gold medal in doubles at the Summer Olympics. Her strong performances have earned her several awards, including the WTA Doubles Team of the Year in 2024 and the Billie Jean King Cup Heart Award, also in 2024. She was recognized for her sportsmanship and skill with the CONI Golden Collar of Sports Merit in the same year.

Result	Year	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Loss	2024	French Open	Clay	Iga Świątek	2–6, 1–6
Loss	2024	Wimbledon	Grass	Barbora Krejčíková	2–6, 6–2, 4–6

Result	Year	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	2024	French Open	Clay	Sara Errani	Coco Gauff Kateřina Siniaková	6–7(5–7), 3–6
Win	2025	French Open	Clay	Sara Errani	Anna Danilina Aleksandra Krunić	6–4, 2–6, 6–1

Result	Year	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Gold	2024	Paris Summer Olympics	Clay	Sara Errani	Mirra Andreeva Diana Shnaider	2–6, 6–1, [10–7]