Losing just three games in a 6-1, 6-2 victory, the No.5 seed and defending champion extended her winning streak at the event to seven matches
After the match, Swiatek revealed that the first-ever meeting with Fernandez was not the only thing weighing on her mind, telling Barbara Schett-Eagle in her on-court interview: "I was in the mood, and that was great because I was pretty stressed since ... I was playing against a younger girl, which is pretty new for me. She's pretty talented and she's a Grand Slam finalist, so I knew it was going to be tricky."
From 1-1 in the first set—two games that stretched past deuce—Swiatek largely cruised: she hit 17 winners to just eight unforced errors, and never faced a break point in 74 minutes.
"I felt really confident," Swiatek added, "and I'm pretty happy that I could finish it really quickly and I didn't let go of focus."
She needed that focus down the stretch, as it took five match points to put Fernandez away. The Canadian saved three in her last service game, putting another hold on the board from 0-40 at 6-1, 5-1.
A streak of straight sets: Swiatek didn't lose a set in Adelaide last year en route to winning her second career title, and her sets won streak at the event has now reached 14.
Give her a (left) hand: With the win, Swiatek also improved to 14-3 against left-handers at pro level. She's won her last six matches against southpaws dating back to a 2020 loss to Arantxa Rus in Rome, just prior to her breakthrough victory at Roland Garros.
"I've never had a problem [playing against left-handers]," Swiatek said. "I had a few opponents who were lefties when I was younger, so I guess on every level I've had chances to play against lefties and I don't mind it, really."
A right-hander awaits Swiatek next, as she'll face either Aussie wildcard Priscilla Hon or former World No.1 Victoria Azarenka.
wtatennis.com
Changing coaches is turning out to be just the right move for Iga, she seems to have regained the confidence and aggressiveness that helped her win Roland Garros in 2020.
Today she played a match that was utter perfection and it was an absolute pleasure to watch. Leylah Fernandez is no slouch after all (having reached last year's U.S. Open final), but the level that Iga displayed today would have been too good even for the likes of people like Ash Barty.
It'll be interesting to see how she does against Azarenka in a few days, that one could be the real test of the tournament. And if she were to get past her we would finally have a first meting with the number 1 player in the world Ash Barty.
I'm shaking with excitement just thinking about it. Honestly if she plays like today she'll be tough for anyone to stop.
Jazda Iga!.
With Poland into the semi finals of ATP Cup courtesy of Hubert Hurkacz the new season is shaping up great.
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