Iga Swiatek makes winning return to Tokyo Japan with hard fought match

No.1 seed Iga Swiatek survived a scare from qualifier Mai Hontama in the second round of the Toray Pan Pacific Open, coming from a double break down in the first set and a break down in the second to advance 6-4, 7-5 in 2 hours and 2 minutes.

Swiatek trailed the home favorite 4-1 at the start of the match, and also had to hold off a late fightback by Hontama, who pegged the Pole back from 5-1 to 5-5 in the second set. Making her debut appearance in Japan, the World No.2 advanced to her 13th quarterfinal of 2023 so far. She has only failed to reach that stage twice this season -- at the Australian Open and US Open, at both of which she lost in the fourth round.

No.148-ranked Hontama had only faced a Top 10 opponent once before, a 6-3, 6-2 loss to Garbiñe Muguruza in the 2021 Chicago quarterfinals. But the Japanese 24-year-old was coming into the match in surging form, having reached her first WTA semifinal in Osaka two weeks ago and then winning three matches in Tokyo without dropping a set, and presented Swiatek with a spirited challenge throughout.

Swiatek will next face No.8 seed Veronika Kudermetova, who defeated Kayla Day 6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour and 26 minutes to reach her ninth quarterfinal of the year so far, and first since Berlin in June.

"Winning five games in a row in the first set really showed me that I could play my game," Swiatek said afterwards. "It wasn’t easy, but I’m happy that I problem-solved and just got through the match."

How the match was won: Hontama took full advantage of a slow start by Swiatek, who struggled for control over her groundstrokes in the early stages and ultimately finished with 41 unforced errors to 21 winners. Terrific defense from the local player enabled her to break the former World No.1 twice and leap out to a 4-1 lead.

It was Swiatek's defense that secured her turnaround, though. A marvellous extended exchange at the start of the fifth game, in which the four-time major champion came up with a pinpoint lob, kickstarted a change in momentum that saw her reel off 10 of the next 11 games to lead 5-1 in the second set.

Those numbers bely the challenge Hontama still presented throughout this passage of play, though. Swiatek still had to survive several multi-deuce tussles and a series of crowd-pleasing winners from Hontama, who briefly led by a break at the start of the second set.

The grit evinced by Hontama also meant that her late charge was unsurprising. Swiatek failed to serve out the match at 5-1 thanks to a slew of cheap errors, and a resurgent Hontama rattled off a series of winners to take the next four games -- even saving two match points serving at 4-5.

Ultimately, though, Swiatek managed to steady herself just enough to get over the line. In the latter stages of the second set, she had lapsed into a more passive approach, allowing Hontama to go on the attack. But this paid off in the final game as Hontama began going for too much, sending a backhand into the net on Swiatek's fourth match point.

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Swiatek reflects on her 75-week run at No.1 after US Open loss

NEW YORK -- Iga Swiatek's 75-week run at World No.1 will end after the US Open. The 22-year-old bowed out in the fourth round of her title defense to Jelena Ostapenko, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 late Sunday night.


"Well, it meant a lot, obviously," Swiatek told reporters after the match. "It was great.

"On the other hand this last part, it was pretty exhausting. I still need to do all this stuff that my team and all these great players like Roger or Novak or Rafa are telling about: you just have to focus on the tournaments, not the rankings."


Swiatek admitted the challenge of holding onto the No.1 ranking had been weighing on her. On Monday after the tournament, Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka will supplant her as the new World No.1. Swiatek had successfully held her off since the French Open but trailed Sabalenka by 245 points on the Race to the WTA Finals Leaderboard, which only calculates points earned in the current season.


Swiatek took over the No.1 ranking in April last year after Ashleigh Barty's sudden retirement, becoming the first Polish No.1 in tennis history. Her elevation came amid what would become the longest win streak of the 21st century, a 37-match run that ran from Doha until Wimbledon. She raced away from the pack, capturing two Slams and eight titles last year. Through it all, she carried the weight and expectations of a nation, setting new milestones for Polish tennis with seemingly every win.


With the pressure to follow up one of the best seasons of the century, Swiatek has stood up to the challenge. Going into New York, she led the tour both wins and titles this year, winning four, including three successful title defenses. Her 75-week streak is the third longest in WTA history for a first-time World No.1, behind only Stefanie Graf (186) and Martina Hingis (80).

"I would love to extend this record a little bit longer," Swiatek said. "This is something that when I was younger, I actually kind of wanted to break some record or have something. I already did that 'cause I already won a Slam as a first Polish player. Obviously being No.1 as the third player in history is great.

"But for sure when it happens, when you lose it, there are some sad emotions. As I said at the beginning, all these great players know it's going to come back if you're going to work hard, focus on the right things, just develop as a player.

"For sure besides this match, which was pretty weird, I feel like I am progressing as a player. I have more skills. The hardest part is already done for me, but this season was really tough and intense. It's not easy to cope with all of this stuff. I'm just happy that I will have time to reset a little bit."

Part of that reset will be more focused time to practice. It's easy to forget that Swiatek had to manage two significant injuries this season. First there was the rib injury she sustained in the spring that forced her out of Miami. Then came a leg injury that threatened her Roland Garros title defense.

As a result, aside from one week of practice on grass, Swiatek has only had two weeks of regular practice. She's been playing an otherwise non-stop schedule.

"For sure I'm not happy with my performances on hard courts in terms of Grand Slams this year," Swiatek said, referring to her fourth-round finishes at in Melbourne and New York. "I think overall, with my history, this season I've done a pretty good job just staying on a constant level, maybe except some matches that I shouldn't mess up.

"But I'm happy that I'm going to have some time now to practice because I really, really need that and I really miss that."

Swiatek is currently entered in the WTA 1000 event in Guadalajara, which begins one week after the US Open on September 17. She is also entered in Tokyo and Beijing.

"There are plenty of things that I know I should have done differently," Swiatek said. "Maybe I'm not mature enough yet to do that. I'm really working hard to not think about [numbers] a lot. Sometimes when you force yourself not to think about stuff, the result is the opposite.

As she now focuses on chasing down the top spot to finish the year at No.1, Swiatek says she'll take positive lessons from how she successfully managed her pressure-packed initial stint in the top spot.

Until then, Swiatek will embrace her new position as the hunter.

"For sure when I'm going to be next time in the same situation, I'm going to do some stuff differently because it was a little bit stressful, and it shouldn't be," Swiatek said. "I mean, tennis is stressful overall, but I should embrace it a little bit more.

"I'll do it differently next time, so I guess that's positive."

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Some thoughts on Iga Swiatek's U.S. Open exit

I've spent the last 12 hours or so thinking about this loss and as much as it pains me to say it I think that in the long run losing the number 1 ranking might be the best thing to happen to Iga. 

It'll allow her to play with more freedom having less pressure on her all the time because as she herself admits it has been tough. It might feel good to be the hunter instead of the hunted for a change. 

It may motivate her even more to work on her game and change and adjust things.  

And as much as I'm not happy with her losing the ranking to Aryna Sabalenka, getting it back will allow her to cross another thing off her achievements a win over a world #1. 

I highly doubt Sabalenka will be able to post anywhere near as impressive a run as Iga's  

Something tells me Sabalenka will quickly find out it is easier to get to the top than it is to stay there.  

There's a reason Iga is only the 3rd woman in the sports history to stay on top 75 consecutive weeks at #1 on the first try. 

It's extremely hard constantly having a target on your back. Not everyone handles it well.  

I get the feeling that #1 ranking may be bounced around a bit the way it was between Alcaraz and Djokovic last year. 

Losing the #1 ranking was inevitable this year, but Iga can always get that back next year. 

What made me sad and  a little worried is the mental scar tissue Iga will now have with Ostapenko having lost to her 4 times without a single win. 

A lot of people have been saying Iga has a problem with big hitters because they take away her time on the ball,  which may be true but  it doesn't explain why her H2H with Sabalenka (who's as big a hitter as they come) is a very positive one. 

An argument can also be made for Rybakina with whom Iga also has a negative H2H but their last couple of meetings Iga wasn't fully healthy so to me they don't completely count. 

With Ostapenko at the moment it's all mental more than anything else I think. Jelena is totally in her head. 

It's why she was able to win the first set and than seemed completely lost and error prone in the 3rd.

She did at one time have a 3-0 H2H with Maria Sakkari  but eventually worked it out and turned it around so there's definitely hope. 

I believe Iga will work harder and come back even stronger. But it may take some time. 

Thankfully something she has plenty of being only 22. 

I am so grateful to have witnessed Iga's journey and her incredible historic run as world number 1 over the past few years.  I couldn't be more proud to hail from Poland. 

I have no doubt you'll get back to the top more than once in your career Iga. There will be many more successes to come over the years of that I'm also certain. Hope you get some well deserved rest now. 

Because the season is far from over.

See you in Guadalajara.


Jazda!

Iga Swiatek sweeps past close friend Juvan in US Open third round

World No.1 Iga Swiatek eased past one of her best friends in Louis Armstrong Stadium on Friday, dismissing qualifier Kaja Juvan 6-0, 6-1 to reach the Round of 16 at the 2023 US Open.

The pair have been close for nearly a decade, since their days in juniors. But defending champion Swiatek of Poland was still unwavering in collecting her third straight win over Slovenia’s Juvan, polishing off the victory after just 49 minutes of play.

Words from the winner: "My level was high, and I didn't make a lot of unforced errors," Swiatek said afterwards. "I'm happy with my performance and overall with the way I started, and then just kind of [was] disciplined and didn't change my level till the end of the match.

"I really just wanted to focus on myself, and I think also because I knew that it's going to be a little bit harder for me to focus because [Juvan is] my best friend, I was actually more focused than usual. I'm happy that I could do that and I was fully professional."

On defense: The victory is Swiatek's 10th straight win at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City, as she aims to defend a title for the fifth time in her career.

Top-seeded Swiatek defended a title for the first time when she went back-to-back at Rome in 2021 and 2022. She defended a title three times this year as well, at Doha, Stuttgart and Roland Garros. Her successful title defense at 2023 Roland Garros marked the fourth Grand Slam title of her career.

Fast facts: Swiatek, who is spending her 74th and 75th weeks at World No.1 during this fortnight, is aiming to maintain her position at the top of the rankings. She must go at least one round further than World No.2 Aryna Sabalenka at this tournament, otherwise Sabalenka will take over at No.1.

Swiatek was helped by her breezy victory on Friday, where she had 21 winners to Juvan's two, and only five unforced errors. Swiatek never faced a break point against 145th-ranked Juvan, who has peaked at No.58 and is on the verge of returning to the Top 100 after this week.

At 22 years old, Swiatek becomes the youngest women’s player to make three consecutive Round of 16 appearances at the US Open since Caroline Wozniacki made four straight between 2008 and 2011.

Next up: Swiatek will next face a dangerous opponent when she takes on 2017 Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko, the No.20 seed, in the Round of 16. Ostapenko overcame American hope Bernarda Pera 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 later on Friday.

Latvia's Ostapenko has had Swiatek's number in their rivalry. Ostapenko has won all three of their previous matches, including handing Swiatek her last loss directly before the World No.1's historic 37-match winning streak last year.

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