In a match between two of the three Grand Slam champions in 2023, World No.1 Iga Swiatek turned around a first-set deficit against Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova to reach the semifinals of the Western & Southern Open.
Roland Garros champion Swiatek trailed the 10th-seeded Czech 5-3 in the first set of their quarterfinal match Friday, but reeled the left-hander in a 7-6(3), 6-1 win on Cincinnati's Center Court.
Swiatek's sixth Top 10 win of 2023, which now leads the Hologic WTA Tour after her 1-hour, 31-minute win broke her tie with Vondrousova, Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka, puts her into her 10th semifinal of the year.
"I'm really happy with my performance," Swiatek said afterwards. "At the beginning, it wasn't easy to get used to her lefty spin, but I'm happy that I kind of played better and better throughout the whole match. At the end, I was really solid."
Turning point: Vondrousova did not face a break point in her first four service games, but cracked when serving for the set at 5-4, when she hit two double faults en route to being broken at love. The Czech twice served for the set after breaking Swiatek again in the 1th game, but never reached set point.
"When she was serving on 5-4, I felt like I have space to kind of push and to get back to the game and break back," Swiatek said. "I did that. I'm happy that I ... made good decisions and chose the right solutions to win these points. I think she also kind of made some mistakes. I think the most important is to use your opportunity, and I'm happy that I did that.
"In the tiebreaker, any point matter. I'm happy that I could kind of focus a little bit more. I already know what I have to play after these games that we played. I learned my lesson. I think I was more efficient."
Swiatek is now 2-0 against Vondrousova all-time, having also beaten the Czech in straight sets on the way to the title at Roland Garros in 2020. For a spot in the final, she'll face either Italy's Jasmine Paolini or No. 7 seed Coco Gauff, who play their quarterfinal later on Friday.
wtatennis.com
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