Iga Swiatek Doha Champion!

                             

Iga Swiatek charged to her first title of the season on Saturday, as the No.7 seed from Poland cruised past No.4 seed Anett Kontaveit of Estonia 6-2, 6-0 to win the Qatar TotalEnergies Open in Doha.

In an overpowering display of all-court mastery, Swiatek took just over an hour to sweep to victory at the WTA 1000 event and end St. Petersburg champion Kontaveit's nine-match winning streak.

Fast facts: Swiatek has now racked up four WTA singles titles in her career, and it is her second WTA 1000 crown. Her previous WTA 1000 title came in Rome last year, where she dispatched Karolina Pliskova 6-0, 6-0 in the final.

Swiatek famously triumphed at the clay-court Grand Slam event at Roland Garros in 2020 for her first career title, but she now has just as many hard-court titles as clay-court titles in her career, with two apiece.

The 20-year-old Pole continues to dominate in finals once she gets to them. Since her only runner-up finish on tour, at Lugano in 2019, Swiatek has dropped a total of 11 games in the four finals she has won:

Iga Swiatek’s last 4 finals: 2020 Roland Garros: 64 61, Kenin 2021 Adelaide: 62 62, Bencic 2021 Rome: 60 60, Pliskova 2022 Doha: 62 60, Kontaveit Lost a total of 2 games in her 2 WTA 1000 finals.

Kontaveit came into the match having reached more finals and won more matches than anyone on tour since the start of 2021 — this was her ninth final during that stretch, and she has prevailed in 61 matches within that timeframe.

But Swiatek refused to fall into any of Kontaveit's traps on the day, winning a staggering 66 percent of points returning the Kontaveit serve and saving six of the seven break points she faced (six of which came in the first set).

Swiatek is now 3-2 against Kontaveit, and the Pole has won their last three meetings, including at Roland Garros and the US Open last season. Swiatek has now won three matches in a row against Top 10 opposition this week, improving to 8-7 overall against that cohort.

Command performance: After falling behind an early break to Swiatek, Kontaveit looked to be back in the hunt after she slammed a forehand winner down the line to break back for 2-2. However, that would prove to be her final appearance on the scoreboard.

Swiatek quickly regained her break lead in the following game, then kept using aggressive returns to take control of many points from the outset. Serving for the set at 5-2, Swiatek calmly erased two break points before closing out the one-set lead.

There were almost no problems for Swiatek in the second set, which she raced through in less than half an hour. Kontaveit kept games close in the opening stages of the set, but there was no stopping the Swiatek power game as the Polish player continued her sterling form in finals.

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What can I say about Iga Swiatek when it comes to finals?. 

They seem to always bring out her best level. I really think that Sakkari win the day prior was a real weight off her shoulders. 

She played with real abandon because she already achieved such a huge mile stone by finally beating her Greek rival. 

In doing so it showed that she felt fearless on court today.

The skill with which she was able to return Kontaveit's serve was something to marvel at. 

I did not expect this level of dominance from Iga given how unbeatable Anett has been going back to last year. 

Iga beat the 2nd most in-form hard court player (the other being Ostapendko) with such extreme ease, it was almost otherworldly. 

She now owns 4 titles, one of which a Grand Slam at 20 years old. 

This girl's talent knows no bounds. 

Agnieszka Radwandska made 5 semi finals in Doha but never won it, or a Grand Slam in her whole career.  

What Iga achieved, and keeps achieving in her young career is beyond incredible. 

Well done Iga!. 

Enjoy this win to the fullest, get some well deserved rest. 

You've made Poland so proud. See you at Indian Wells. 

Jazda! 

Iga Swiatek finally solves the Sakkari puzzle to reach Doha final in Qatar

                   

No.7 seed Iga Swiatek of Poland notched a breakthrough win over one of her toughest opponents in the Qatar TotalEnergies Open semifinals on Friday, defeating No.6 seed Maria Sakkari of Greece 6-4, 6-3.

"Really excited," Swiatek said in her post-match press conference. "For sure I showed consistency throughout the whole tournament, and I'm really happy that I could keep my level of tennis at a really high level."

Swiatek advances to the Doha final for the first time, where she will meet No.4 seed Anett Kontaveit of Estonia for the title. 2020 Roland Garros champion Swiatek will be going for her fourth career WTA singles title while Kontaveit seeks her seventh.

Fast facts: Swiatek and Sakkari had their first three meetings all last year — and each time Sakkari had won in straight sets. Sakkari was even responsible for ending Swiatek's 2020 Roland Garros title defense in the 2021 quarterfinals.

But Swiatek finally solved the Sakkari riddle in Doha, moving into a WTA 1000 final for the second time in her career, and the first time on a hard court. In her previous WTA 1000 final, Swiatek thumped Karolina Pliskova 6-0, 6-0 to win the Rome crown last year.

"These matches when I play against players that I really didn't have a good head-to-head before, it shows I did a good job changing that," said Swiatek. "It's like a brand new start for me. Even though I have been on tour and my opponents are the same, I feel like these tournaments are different. That's really great for me."

Against Sakkari, Swiatek was in blistering form, taking the clash in an hour and 28 minutes. Swiatek slammed 20 winners in the affair while allowing Sakkari only nine winners. Each player had eight break points, but Swiatek converted five while Sakkari converted three.

Swiatek has now collected seven Top 10 wins in her career, and two consecutively this week after knocking off top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals.

Key moments: Sakkari grabbed an early break at 2-1 in the first set, but Swiatek used sturdy returning to grit out a tough game and break back for 3-3. Swiatek’s powerful hitting trumped dogged Sakkari defending down the stretch, locking up the one-set lead by breaking the Greek with an incredible forehand winner that clipped the sideline.

The pair exchanged breaks twice in the early going of the second set — including three straight breaks at love from 2-2 to 3-3 — but Swiatek clinched the critical break to move ahead 5-3 after a wide error by Sakkari on break point. A solid error-forcing forehand gave Swiatek her first match point in the following game, and she used that shot again to seal victory.

Final showdown: An all-Top 10 championship match will take place on Saturday, with Swiatek taking on Kontaveit. Their head-to-head is level at 2-2, but Swiatek has won the last two matches which took place last year at Roland Garros and the US Open.

"I felt like [Kontaveit and I] always had good rhythm maybe on court, and that's why the rallies were long," said Swiatek. "We were kind of even in everything.

"I don't know how it's going to be right now, because the last match I played against her was basically before she had that great streak at the end of last year. I'll be ready for anything, honestly. Every match is a different story.

"Anett showed she's really consistent and I really respect that, because how she played during the past few months, it's been amazing. I just hope it's going to be a good show. I hope I'm going to be able to play my game and just look forward."

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I said in yesterday's post I had this one was going to be different. I was right, and it feels so good to say that :). 

I admit when Iga started crying into her towel at the end I shed a few tears too. You could see how much this win meant to her. How much she's been working on her mentality. 

Kontaveit next. 

Each time they've played it's been a marathon, so I don't expect it to be easy by any means, but at least Iga will be able to take comfort in the fact she's got a decent H2H.

I'm hoping that will allow her to play more relaxed tomorrow. 

Jazda Iga! 

Iga Swiatek posts first victory over Sabalenka to reach semis in Doha

Swiatek topples Sabalenka

In the nightcap clash, No.7 seed Iga Swiatek of Poland zipped past No.1 seed Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 6-3 in an hour and 14 minutes to reach the semifinals.

Current World No.2 Sabalenka had won their only prior encounter in group play at the WTA Finals last season, but this time around it was Swiatek who was the dominant force to level their head-to-head. Swiatek is now 2-5 against Top 2 opponents in her career.

With the defeat, 2020 Doha champion Sabalenka will fall out of the World No.2 position, a spot she has held since August 23 of last year.

2020 Roland Garros champion Swiatek converted seven of her eight break points on the day. The Pole was also much more effective winning after first serves, as she won 68 percent of those points. Sabalenka's success rate behind her own first serves lingered at 41 percent.

"This match is going to give me a lot of confidence," Swiatek said in her post-match press conference. "I'm very happy that tactically I did a great job, and my mental game was also on point. That's the most important thing for me, because from the beginning I wanted to be aggressive and to be focusing on myself and on my game."

Six of the first seven games of the clash went to the returner, which put Swiatek at a distinct advantage as the lone hold in the second game of that streak contributed to her 5-2 lead. Another critical hold followed in the next game, giving Swiatek the opening set.

Sabalenka grabbed an early break and a 3-0 lead in the second set, but with extremely powerful forehands in her assortment of shots, Swiatek methodically chipped away at that advantage. Swiatek reeled off six games in a row from there to pick up the straight-set win.

Swiatek will take on No.6 seed Maria Sakkari of Greece for a spot in the final. Swiatek and Sakkari have met three times previously, all in 2021, and Sakkari emerged the winner each time, including in last year's Roland Garros quarterfinals where the Greek ended Swiatek's title defense.

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I'll be honest I did not have a lot of confidence going into this match. I thought Sabalenka's power and stronger serve, which seems to have gotten over the yips would over take Iga. But boy, am I glad I was wrong. 

Instead of worrying about her serve Swiatek focused on returning Sabalenka's serves which put pressure on her and didn't allow her to dictate the match with her power. 

In fact Iga went toe to toe with her and won the majority of longer rallies by returning more effectively then her opponent. It was an absolute feast for the eyes. 

It's a match that's worthy of more than one viewing. Having passed this huge test, next will come the real challenge of Maria Sakkari who has beaten Iga in every match they played last year. 

But something about Iga's attitude in Doha and her new found confidence no doubt partly instilled by her new couch tells me tomorrow's result is going to be different. Jazda Iga!.

Iga Swiatek sails into Doha quarter-finals sets rematch with Sabalenka

Swiatek beats Kasatkina for third time this year

In just 64 minutes, Iga Swiatek her third with against Daria Kasatkina in the last month. The No.7 seed booked a spot in her third quarterfinal of the season with a 6-3, 6-0 victory, setting a date with top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the process.

Another dominant performance: In three matches between the two so far this year at the Australian Open, Dubai and Doha, Swiatek hasn't lost a set and surrendered just 11 games combined.

Highlights: Swiatek def. Kasatkina

From 2-2 in the first set, Swiatek won 10 of the last 11 games. She saved two break points at 2-2 in the opener to hold, and secured the decisive break than earned her the first set in the next game.

Sabalenka won the pair's only previous meeting, which came last fall at the AKRON WTA Finals Guadalajara. In the round-robin clash, the Belarusian came from a set down to win, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5.

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Iga Swiatek's successful year continues in Doha Qatar

No.7 seed Iga Swiatek of Poland earned a tough three-set win at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open on Tuesday, battling past a spirited Viktorija Golubic of Switzerland 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 to reach the round of 16.

2020 Roland Garros champion Swiatek needed just over two hours to claim the hard-fought victory and claim a spot in the Doha round of 16 for the first time in her career.

By the numbers: With the win, World No.8 Swiatek exacted some revenge on 36th-ranked Golubic. The Swiss player had beaten Swiatek in straight sets in their lone previous meeting, in the first round of 2019 Wimbledon.

But this time around, it was Swiatek who closed out the win, claiming exactly two-thirds of Golubic's second-service points and converting six of her 10 break points.

Key moments: Swiatek saved a total of five break points in her first two service games before romping through the rest of the opening set. However, Golubic stormed back in the second set, building a commanding double-break lead and breaking Swiatek in the last game to tie the match.

Swiatek, though, regrouped in the third set to take charge, slamming an incredible backhand winner down the line to break for a 3-2 lead. Serving for the match at 5-2, Swiatek swatted away two break points with aggressive play, dictating with her forehand through the rest of the game to seal victory.

Next up: Swiatek will face Daria Kasatkina in the third round on Wednesday. Swiatek leads the head-to-head with Kasatkina 2-1, turning their rivalry around by winning their two meetings this year. Swiatek beat Kasatkina at the 2022 Australian Open, as well as just last week in Dubai.

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