INDIAN WELLS -- It took Iga Swiatek all of five minutes -- suffering back-to-back double faults in the process -- to find her bearings at the BNP Paribas Open.
After holding serve to open her match against qualifier Kayla Day, Swiatek smashed three monstrous forehand winners through the stout desert wind in the second game and was on her way to a roundabout 6-0, 7-6 (2) second-round victory.
Swiatek is a notoriously fast starter in these WTA 1000 events; she’s now won a staggering 33 straight opening matches, and 73 straight in all WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz events.
The champion here in 2022 and 2024, Swiatek is looking for a third title in this even-numbered year.
“First set showed me exactly how to play, but I just didn't do that at the beginning of the second, so I knew that I can get back to that and turn things around,” Swiatek said afterward. “That I can and to be intense but more precise with my footwork and put pressure on my opponent.”
On Monday, Swiatek faces off against old nemesis Maria Sakkari, earlier a 7-5, 6-0 winner over wild card Lilli Tagger. The head-to-head couldn’t be closer, at 4-all.
But while Swiatek won both previous matches at Indian Wells in straight sets (2022 and 2024), it was Sakkari emerging triumphant just last month in the Doha quarterfinals, 2-6, 6-4, 7-5. After winning all 109 WTA 1000 matches in which she won the opening set, Swiatek lost for the very first time.
Sakkari has been resurgent of late, after finishing in the year-end Top 10 from 2021-23.
This was the first meeting between Swiatek and Day, the California left-hander who navigated her way through qualifying and was trying to match her best effort at Indian Wells, a third-round berth nine years ago at the age of 17.
Day began the year at No. 256 in the PIF WTA Rankings, but arrived at Indian Wells at No. 187 after winning a pair of ITF tournaments, in Martinique, France and Orlando, Florida.
While the first set was a shutout, Day came back in the second, converting her third break point in the opening game and back it up with her first hold of the match. Swiatek came perilously close to falling behind 3-0, but saved three break points at love-40.
In her next service game, Swiatek again fell into a love-40 hole -- and saved all three break opportunities for Day. But this time, Swiatek did not escape. A double fault at deuce and a down-the-line backhand pass gave Day a 4-1 lead.
It was 5-1, when Day may have begun to contemplate the gravity of what was at hand. After all, her biggest complete career win, rankings-wise, came a decade ago in New Haven qualifying when she best No. 68 Kirsten Flipkens. Here she came within two points of leveling her match against the World No. 2.
Swiatek mounted a serious rally, winning five straight games to take a 6-5 lead but Day managed to send it to a tiebreak. Swiatek was nearly as perfect as she was in the first set, sprinting out to a 5-0 lead and winning seven of nine points.
Break points, as usual, told the story. Swiatek was 5-for-5, while Day converted only two of 13. Swiatek finished with seven double faults.
“I think for sure I drifted off a little bit for some games, and then I became tight because of that,” Swiatek said. “For sure I needed to get back to my first-set game. I feel like I did that quite well. Yeah, I played with much more spin, confidence, and that's why I could win these [six] games in a row and get back to the match."
That first-set shutout, achieved in 28 minutes, was Swiatek’s 36th in a WTA 1000, behind only Martina Hingis (52), Serena Williams (50), Conchita Martinez (40) and Victoria Azarenka(37).
Swiatek owns a 23-3 (.885) record in the desert, creeping ever closer to Steffi Graf’s standard of 17-2, (.895). Only Victorias Azarenka (35) has more main-draw singles match-wins at Indian Wells.
While the second set lapses continue to be a worry it's actually quite impressive how she was able to comeback from 1/5 30 all down.
Honestly it's just good to have Iga Swiatek back on court (even if she is suffering from a bit of a cold).
33 - Iga Swiatek has claimed a 33rd consecutive opening match win at WTA-1000 events - it is the longest such streak of any player since the format's introduction in 2009. Start.
No comments:
Post a Comment