Iga Swiatek falls to Svitolina in Indian Wells Quarterfinals

 

Well in any type of progress there's always 2 steps forward one step back. Seems that's what yesterday's match was for Iga vs Svitolina. 

I did say I'd need to see more evidence of Iga playing really good players in the top 10 before declaring her being 'back'. Svitolina was the litmus test and unfortunately Iga still didn't pass. 

Despite the fact Svitolina didn't have the best day herself.

I just wish these steps backwards for Iga would happen less. It's so hard to gauge where her game is at with nearly flawless performances one minute and complete deterioration the next. 

Today the serve really let her down, I realize that she's working on her serve behind the scenes so there'll be a lot of trial and error but the amount of double faults per match are very uncharacteristic and concerning now. 

This loss also means a slight drop in the ranking (by 1) for Iga, with Rybakina taking the number 2 spot for the moment. 

But honestly that's the least of Iga's worries, if and when she finally finds her game and starts getting more wins then losses against top 10 players the ranking will reflect that.

Until than I'm starting to think we may hit a bit of a further decline position wise. 

It's tough as a long time Iga fan to see her struggle this much. 

At this rate I almost want her to skip Miami and get ready for the clay swing, but she has quarterfinal points to defend there and it's hard to work on things like your game or match confidence (regardless of the surface) if you don't play any matches especially against top 10 opponents.

Definitely not the result Iga or her fans wanted, but hopefully Iga can look at the 2 matches with Sakkari and Muchova, take it as a positive and build on it. 

Whether she'll be able to do that right away in Miami next week hard to say. 

We might have to see a change of surface before Iga gets her rhythm back to a more consistent and permanent basis. 

That's the hope. 

The life of a tennis fan is supporting their favourites in good times and in bad, so that's what I'll do.

I still believe better times are ahead for Iga this year, it's just a matter of when.

Keep your head up Iga, keep working and believe in the process.

Jazda.

Iga Swiatek reaches 5th consecutive quarterfinal at Indian Wells

 

INDIAN WELLS -- Karolina Muchova came into this BNP Paribas Open enjoying all kinds of momentum. She was the recent champion at the WTA 1000 event in Doha and had won 14 of 16 matches when she met Iga Swiatek in Wednesday’s fourth-round match.

But, in the span of a scant 77 minutes, it was 2025 all over again. A year ago, Swiatek sent Muchova packing -- dropping only two games -- in another fourth-round match.

This one was eerily one-sided, as the No. 2-seeded Swiatek played, all things considered, her best match of the young season, winning 6-2, 6-0. Swiatek has now won five of six career matches against No. 13 Muchova.

“Yeah, for sure, I felt great,” Swiatek said in her on-court interview. “I felt like I was playing better and better. Just great.

“She’s my favorite WTA player to watch, so it’s really nice also to play against her. Basically, she might be like the only player I watch, so maybe that’s why I also feel how she plays.”

Swiatek thus ended Muchova’s win streak of eight matches, the longest active streak among players on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz and prevented her from equaling her best career result at Indian Wells.

Swiatek did not face a break point, while breaking Muchova five times.

“I always want to be proactive with my forehand, because this is what gives me points,” Swiatek explained later. “I think I just chose the right balls to go forward or to stay back and grind a bit more and play with more shape. I think just the decision-making was good today so I didn't rush, and I had just comfortable situations to do what I wanted to.

“So I think it's a combination of that, but overall, you know, I always kind of want to do a lot with my forehand.”

Notable stats

That second-set shutout was the 38th for Swiatek in a WTA 1000 event, now fourth on the all-time list after surpassing Victoria Azarenka.

Swiatek reached her 27th quarterfinal in WTA 1000 events, equaling Karolina Pliskova and Maria Sharapova for the eighth most since the format introduction in 2009.

Looking at the broader picture, Swiatek has played 43 WTA 1000 events, giving her a remarkable success rate of .628 in reaching the final eight.

After Roland Garros (40 match-wins) and the Australian Open (26), Indian Wells is now Swiatek’s third-best tournament in that respect, with 25.

How the match unfolded

This was a masterclass by Swiatek, a shades-of-2022 clinic. Everything was working. Her topspin-heavy forehand was firing in vintage form. She likes these slow hard courts, and Wednesday she was reading Muchova’s serve with something approaching telepathy, moving before the ball even struck the racquet.

Muchova did well to stay on serve through five games, but the sixth eluded her after a protracted, five-deuce battle. Swiatek bounded to net and finished with a backhand volley winner, then walloped another good return and Muchova couldn’t land a scrambling forehand.

Swiatek broke Muchova at her first opportunity in the second set and ran away, ultimately converting her second match point. Swiatek slid for a ball in that final game, then stopped for a moment to check her right ankle before playing on.

“All good,” Swiatek reported afterward. “I just hit myself with the racquet.”

Next up

Swiatek will play Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals.

“No matter who I'm going to play, it's going to be a tough match because these are players that are basing their game at being solid, like running to everything and getting every ball back,” Swiatek said. “I think I'm going to have to have a lot of discipline to just finish the point even a couple of times sometimes.

“But, yeah, it's going to be tough anyway. It's the second week of a really great tournament, so only good players play. So, yeah, I'll watch probably a little bit, and then I'll be ready.”

wtatennis.com

Back to back great performances from Iga. 

Need to see a bit more against top 10 players before I declare Iga truly back but this felt like the Iga of old which is extremely encouraging.  

Don't know whether it's Indian Wells favorable conditions or the feeling she gets being there having won it before but things are definitely starting to click.

Frist time this season she didn't face a break point too. Positives all around.

Svitolina next, another challenge for sure.

But we believe.

Jazda!

5 - Iga Swiatek is the third player to reach the quarter-finals in Indian Wells in five consecutive editions of the event (2022-2026) after Lindsay Davenport (1993-1998) and Martina Hingis (1998-2002). Paradisiacal.

20 - Iga Swiatek is the third-youngest player to reach 20 WTA-1000 hard court quarter-finals since the format’s introduction in 2009, older only than Agnieszka Radwanska and Caroline Wozniacki. Playground.

38 - Since the Tier I format’s introduction in 1990, only Martina Hingis (52), Serena Williams (50) and Conchita Martinez (40) have claimed more sets 6-0 than Iga Swiatek in such events (38, surpassing Victoria Azarenka). Swiateking.

25 - Only Serena Williams (27) has claimed 25 wins in Indian Wells in fewer matches played than Iga Swiatek (28) since the tournament’s inception in 1989. Hurry.

 

Iga Swiatek reaches career 250th week in the top 10

Iga Swiatek faced Maria Sakkari in the third round of Indian Wells today, but before she even took the court, she reached a milestone.

Today she began her 250th career week in the Top 10 of the WTA rankings, an incredible achievement given she’s still just 24 years old.

Having already captured her first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros in 2020, Swiatek broke into the Top 10 for the first time as a 19-year-old on May 17th, 2021, rising from No. 15 to No. 9 after winning her first WTA 1000 title in Rome. And other than slipping to No. 11 for two weeks in October that year, she’s been ranked in the Top 10 ever since.

IGA SWIATEK'S TOP 10 STINTS:

May 17th to October 17th, 2021 [22 weeks]
November 1st, 2021 to present [228 weeks and counting]

Incredibly, Swiatek has spent 195 of her 250 career weeks in the Top 10 inside the Top 2. She spent 125 weeks at No. 1 between 2022 and 2024, and this week will be her 70th career week at the No. 2 spot.

IGA SWIATEK'S 250 TOP 10 WEEKS BY RANKING:

No. 1: 125 weeks
No. 2: 70 weeks [including this week]

No. 3: 5 weeks
No. 4: 9 weeks
No. 5: 3 weeks
No. 6: 1 week
No. 7: 2 weeks
No. 8: 14 weeks
No. 9: 20 weeks
No. 10: 1 week

There’s no chance of her falling out of the Top 10—or even the Top 5—no matter what happens the rest of the way at Indian Wells this week.

tennis.com

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Iga Swiatek gets revenge on Sakkari reaches another round of 16 at Indian Wells

INDIAN WELLS -- It’s a long, long way from Warsaw, Poland -- closing in on 6,000 miles -- but Iga Swiatek can’t help but feel at home here in the desert.

The relatively slow hard courts and higher bounces suit her game and discerning eye. The warm vibe seems to be a good fit with her relatively chill personality. As a result, Swiatek has now produced a sterling record of 24-3 (.889) at the BNP Paribas Open and made at least the semifinals each of the past four years, including two titles.

She’d love to make it three-out-of-five.

On Monday evening, it was a routine 6-3, 6-2 victory over No. 32 seed Maria Sakkari, who had beaten Swiatek just last month in the Doha quarterfinals. Swiatek now holds a 5-4 head-to-head career edge.

“We played two finals here, so it’s funny [to see] us playing two years later in third round,” Swiatek said in her on-court interview. “So for sure it wasn’t an easy match. I’m really happy with the result.”

Sakkari and Swiatek came to this match riding vastly different trajectories. Swiatek was ranked No. 2 when Ashleigh Barty retired before the Miami Open in 2022 and was elevated to No. 1. For the duration of those nearly four years, Swiatek has held one of the top two positions in the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz rankings.

That same year, 2022, Sakkari rose to a career high of No. 3 on the strength of four final appearances, including Indian Wells. She would finish among the year-end Top 10 for three straight years, but in 2024 her ranking declined to No. 32 and, in 2025, No. 52.

Coming in, though, Sakkari had been efficient, winning all her service games and saving six-of-six break points. She started that way against Swiatek, converting her fourth break point in the opening game and executing a lengthy hold for a 2-0 lead.

And then Swiatek ramped up her forehand through the breezy conditions and won six of the last seven games.

The second set was more of the same, with Swiatek breaking Sakkari’s serve three times. One last backhand from Sakkari drifted long and Swiatek raised her fist as she strode to net.

Swiatek broke Sakkari five times in all and saved six of eight break points against her.

Thus, Swiatek is the first woman to advance to the Round of 16 for six consecutive years at Indian Wells since Agnieszka Radwanska and Carolina Wozniacki between 2008-2014. Since the format’s introduction in 2009, Swiatek (129-31, .806) trails only Serena Williams (148-28, .841) for winning percentage at WTA-1000 events -- minimum 10 matches.

In Swiatek’s past 34 matches against opponents ranked outside the Top 20, she had just one loss -- against Sakkari in Doha -- and now that defeat has been avenged.

Swiatek said she went to school on that loss to Sakkari in Doha.

“I think I adjusted better to the shorter balls than I did in Doha,” Swiatek said afterward. “I remember it was quite annoying there making mistakes from these balls. I also understood the wind a bit better.

“I think I served better, maybe. The return was also, like, on point. I remember in Doha mishitting and not hitting clean sometimes. Today I could really feel free to push Maria. Yeah, I just had good timing, I would say.”

https://www.wtatennis.com/news/4465336/swiatek-finds-her-range-to-halt-sakkaris-momentum-in-indian-wells

Welcome back Iga Swiatek by far the best match all season. 

Kept her focus all the way through and showed great numbers on serve. 

May this be the start of  even better things to come. 

Definitely trending in the right direction. 

And getting revenge over Sakkari for Doha?. 

Bonus. 

Guess she really did know exactly what she did wrong in Doha, because she certainly rectified it here.

Well done Iga, hats off.

Muchova next definitely won't be easy she never is, but I hope they both bring a good level and make it really good contest. 

They did practice together before the start of the tournament and Iga like all of us enjoys watching Muchova play. Who wouldn't.

Jazda!

42 - At WTA-1000 events, Iga Swiatek has claimed a 42nd career win over a WTA-1000 champion, surpassing Victoria Azarenka (41) for the outright most of any player since the format's introduction in 2009. Trounce.

Iga Swiatek back to winning ways in the desert at Indian Wells

 

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.

https://www.wtatennis.com/news/4464297/swiatek-rolls-early-regroups-late-and-sets-up-indian-wells-rematch-with-sakkari

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).

From 5-1 down in the 2nd set, Iga makes an impressive comeback to win in straight sets and extend her perfect record to 88-0 when winning a set 6-0 in her career.

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.

11 - Iga Swiatek has won 11.0% of her total career sets at WTA-1000 events by a score of 6-0 - since the Tier format's introduction in 1990, only Gabriela Sabatini (12.9%) holds a higher rate at Tier I/WTA-1000 events.

Iga Swiatek adresses Indian Wells controversy

 

 

Iga Swiatek Instagram

So there we have it, Iga in her own words. 

About issues she was partially forced to address due to judgements, opinions and theories on social media as well main stream media scrutiny (who in my opinion blew things out of proportion). 

Nonetheless it's good to see Iga defending herself. 

It's quite insightful, and a real reminder of just how much she has been through these past several months. 

I have always appreciated her candidness, being an introvert myself I know how hard it can be to share deeply personal things with friends much less with the whole world. 

It's interesting she brings up losing the world #1 ranking I've always had my suspicious about that meaning a whole lot to her than she often let on.

Which she pretty much confirmed when she got it back from Sabalenka at the end of 2023.  

Not having the chance to defend it at the end of 2024 due to circumstances beyond her control (with the doping ban) clearly hurt a lot. And understandably so. 

When you're a perfectionist like she is with her own high standards and expectations it can be even harder to  let go of things or get used to a new status quo.

It's really no wonder she's having a hard time mentally at the moment it is a lot deal with for any average person much less a global athlete. 

It's actually been a bit tough for me to watch her since the Aussie Open ended. Its been tough seeing her so negative and angry and upset with herself and the people around her. 

But it's in hard  times that you always need support the most, so as her fan I will continue to support her and believe in her in good times and bad

I just hope that fans and people around her give her the support and understanding she needs to work on things.

Iga Swiatek suffers back to back losses to Mirra Andreeva this time at Indian Wells

 A few observations about this match, it was actually really high quality and I was impressed with how well Iga served throughout. 

It's the kind of match I was hoping for in Dubai. 

That 3rd set was very winnable from Iga's perspective. It came down to couple of key points towards the end, the 30 all point with Mirra serving to make it 5/3 where Iga made some errors on the backhand and the 30-0  and 30 all point on Iga's serve where she had a chance to put pressure on Mirra by making her serve it out. 

In all those points Iga just lacked a little something, she described it as guts in her post match interview with the Polish media. 

Said that lately when she is in pressure situations and she tries to go for it it just hasn't worked out and it's something she needs to work on.

All credit to Mirra who was more solid when it counted, but this definitely feels like a lost opportunity. 

Iga was actually doing a better job all match dealing with the  windy conditions, so much so in fact that you could tell it was visibly frustrating her opponent had Iga managed  to hold her serve to make Mirra serve it out I really think she would have gotten back into the match.

The match did seem to unravel a bit early on in the 3rd where Iga got so upset she hit a ball high trying to make it go on to the stands where her team was sitting. 

Which I think occurred after a double fault, and it escalated into an argument with the umpire. 

It was quite uncharacteristic. 

There's a lot of discussion online regarding her relationship with her psychologist and whether Iga should keep her on (which is actually nothing new and happens every time she loses) so I never give it any weight. 

But there's no denying now that Iga is lacking problem solving skills under stress and instead gets quite frustrated and angry. 

Whereas before she was able to keep it all in check despite the occasional panic when things weren't going her way. 

Keeping a cool head under pressure is something you could always count on with Iga especially in the penultimate stages of a tournament 

Lately that ability is just not there, you could also make the argument (as many have) that she still hasn't quite come to grips after everything that happened with the doping ban. 

Some keep referring to her loss at the Olympics as the thing that really changed things on a subconscious level. 

Personally I think she's processed all that, and it's more about lack of confidence (guts as Iga mentioned)  when she gets to the final stages. 

Not winning a title since mid last year would shake anyone's confidence really. 

Iga has her own very high standards and right now the frustration of not meeting them is losing her matches. She just needs to keep working to get back on track.

I think for all of us Iga fans it's a bit hard to reconcile what we're seeing right now because we're so used to her winning all the time. 

At the moment it's her opponents who are improving and evolving and Iga just hasn't caught up.  

Given time I think she'll get there and whether that involves some more changes with her team or something else only Iga truly knows.

I'll only start to worry if we don't see any results on the clay till than I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt.

Let's see how things go in Miami.

Keep your head up Iga, your tennis is still there you just need to trust it more.

Defending Champion Iga Swiatek back in the semis of Indian Wells

 

No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek is continuing to set records at the BNP Paribas Open. The defending champion returned to the semifinals with a 6-3, 6-3, defeat of No. 8 seed Zheng Qinwen, her 10th straight match-win here.

Swiatek becomes the first player in tournament history to reach the Indian Wells semifinals in four consecutive years, and the third player to win her first four quarterfinals here following Monica Seles and Maria Sharapova. The Polish star has lost just two main-draw matches at the tournament in her career -- to Jelena Ostapenko in the 2021 fourth round and to Elena Rybakina in the 2023 semifinals. (In 2019, Swiatek also lost in qualifying to Ysaline Bonaventure.)

On Thursday, Swiatek looked dominant despite swirling winds.

"I think every time is a bit different," Swiatek said when asked about the conditions. "If I'm gonna adjust well, then I'm gonna be able to use it to my advantage in terms of, I don't know, playing more spinny with the wind so it bounces even higher."

This year, Swiatek has conceded only 12 games on her way to the semifinals -- tied for the fewest by any player who has played at least four matches to reach this stage, alongside Lindsay Davenport (2004), Justine Henin (2006) and Jelena Jankovic (2008).

Swiatek improves to 7-1 overall against Zheng, avenging a heartbreaking loss in last year's Paris Olympic Games semifinals, their most recent meeting. She advances to her third semifinal of 2025, and will face No. 9 seed Mirra Andreeva as she bids to reach her first final since Roland Garros last June. Andreeva, 17, rolled to her 10th straight win after defeating Elina Svitolina 7-5, 6-3 to make her second straight WTA 1000 semifinal.

Superior serving, clutch play key for Swiatek: Between the two players, Zheng is more renowned for her serve. The Chinese player slammed a tour-leading 445 aces in 2024 and won a remarkable 76% of her first-serve points last year. But in this match, it was Swiatek whose delivery proved a greater weapon. The 23-year-old won 74% of her first-serve points compared to Zheng's 53%.

Her superiority was underlined by her clutch performance on return. Swiatek converted all five of her break point opportunities on Zheng's serve, while saving three of the five against her. Zheng will also rue to separate service games, down 4-1 in the first set and in the opening game of the second, in which she was broken from 40-0 up.

Scenic route to closing sets: At the tail end of each set, Swiatek wobbled briefly while Zheng played her best tennis. Swiatek led 5-1 in both, but was broken to have her lead cut to 5-3. The gulf was too much to make up both times, but Zheng's grit made the final scoreline more respectable -- the six games she won were as many as Swiatek's previous three opponents combined.

On avenging her loss to Zheng at the Olympics: "Well, obviously [coach] Wim analyzed this match," Swiatek said. "And we kind of spoke about it a bit, but besides the fact that this was the only match that I lost against Qinwen and I wanted to learn from it, it didn't really cross my mind that much, because I knew that this is on hard court and I knew what I did wrong on the Olympics."

wtatennis.com

Sweet, sweet revenge. Slight wobble while serving it out but overall another superb performance from Iga in extremely blustery conditions.

Tomorrow another challenge awaits and another opportunity for revenge. Mirra Andreeva who served Iga her most recent defeat in Dubai just two weeks ago. 

I will say that in that match Iga capitulated by really letting her emotions overtake her and just completely lost the plot. I don't think that will be the case here.

Iga feels at home here, and I believe that even if it gets tough she will above all stay calm and find solutions, 

Jazda Iga, you can do this!. Trust your game and your serve and your superior athleticism. 

It's your time to finally get your first final of 2025. 

Defending Champion Iga Swiatek back in the quarters of Indian Wells

 

INDIAN WELLS -- Last week the two 2023 Roland Garros finalists were practicing on these bouncy desert courts. According to Iga Swiatek, she and Karolina Muchova played at a “pretty similar” level.

On Tuesday, however, it wasn’t even close. Swiatek produced a 6-1, 6-1victory over Muchova at the BNP Paribas Open. It was over in 57 minutes.

“Honestly, sometimes matches can be pretty weird,” Swiatek told reporters. “It’s enough for one player to not feel perfect and the other feel great. Then suddenly the difference is much bigger than it usually is.

“It’s tennis. Things like that can happen. For sure I used my opportunities and I used my chances. It’s not easy, but, well, I can imagine that it looks like it.”

It doesn’t matter who’s on the other side of the net -- Swiatek just keeps on doing Iga things at Indian Wells. She raced into the quarterfinals, where she’ll face the winner of the later match between No. 8 Zheng Qinwen and No. 18 Marta Kostyuk on Thursday.

The World No. 2 dropped all of four games in previous wins over Caroline Garcia and Dayana Yastremska -- including two with a scoreline of 6-0. Through three matches, Swiatek has now won 36 of 42 games.

Swiatek, however, can step to the head of the class with a title Sunday. She won here in 2022 as well as a year ago -- and a third championship would be unprecedented. Her record at Indian Wells has swelled to 21-2 at Indian Wells, a .913 winning percentage second only to Martina Navratilova’s 100 % -- 10-0.

For the second straight match, Swiatek did not face a break point. Her serve, she said, has been a point of emphasis in recent months. But it’s her return game that has been truly flourishing. The goal for these elite players is to win half of their return games. For the record, Swiatek has won 16 of 21, better than 76 %.

“I feel for sure like I’m returning well and I’m trying to put pressure on my opponents,” she said. “But I wouldn’t say I change anything or something. I’m kind of going the same kind of process I always had.”

Swiatek is the first woman to reach the Indian Wells quarterfinals for four consecutive years since Karolina Pliskova from 2016-19. She has now beaten Muchova in four straight matches, including the 2023 final at Roland Garros, and is 4-1 overall.

On a rainy, blustery day, the match was delayed nearly an hour. Typically, Swiatek has a firm risk-reward ratio in her mind, but toward the end she ramped it up.

“I knew this big cloud is coming, and probably if I’m not going to finish, then I’m going to wait a bit,” Swiatek said. “On last two games, it was a bit slippery already, but I really wanted to finish. So I kind of played more risky -- but the shots were still in.”

That’s the way it’s been going for Swiatek here, even the circus shots are falling.

wtatennis.com

On a miserably rainy and gloomy day in California Iga really took care of business. I can honestly say I did not expect the match to be this one sided. 

Half way through this match I was starting to wonder if whatever physical effects Muchova was feeling a few days prior in her match were partly to blame. She was just uncharacteristically bad.

Whatever the reason it still doesn't take away from a superb performance by Iga. Who just could do no wrong today. 

Another fantastically dominant display and score line. 

I'm sure not facing much opposition or pressure helped her to play even more relaxed and free, but nonetheless it was still quite impressive.

She seems to have found her groove at Indian Wells and feels quite comfortable in the Californian Desert.

Her next opponent could be Marta Kostyuk or Zheng Quinwen which would mean an opportunity to avenge a painful Olympics loss in Paris in the Summer of last year. 

As a fan I would love for Iga to be able to slay those demons here (even if it is on a hardcourt and not clay).

If she can play as focused, on point and relaxed on Thursday I could see her doing just that.

At the time I'm posting this Iga's opponents haven't even stepped on court yet due to the never ending rain (and I'm starting to think they may be moved to the next day).

Iga Swiatek wih another impressive win at Indian Wells

 

INDIAN WELLS -- The backhand was well wide, but clipped the tape -- radically changing direction -- and dropped in for an unlikely winner. Iga Swiatek, who had just won her seventh straight game of the match, raised her hand.

Sorry, not sorry.

Sunday was that kind of day for Dayana Yastremska at the BNP Paribas Open. Swiatek skated off with a 6-0, 6-2 third-round victory in 65 minutes.

Yastremska, a victim of her over-aggressive groundstrokes -- and Swiatek’s consistent composure -- finally got on the board 53 minutes into the match when Swiatek’s backhand return sailed long. That ended Swiatek’s 10-game win streak.

Showing some grit, Yastremska rallied to win two service games before Swiatek served it out. The World No. 2 did not face a break point.



The champion here in 2022 and 2024, Swiatek is going for her third title -- something no woman has ever achieved. She gets the winner of the later match between No. 15 seed Karolina Muchova and Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday.

It’s a dry heat

Two hours before her match with Dayana Yastremska, Swiatek was on court in Stadium 1, working with her team. Coach Wim Fissette, racquet in hand, stood about 20 feet away, watching Swiatek lash groundstrokes from the baseline. After about 10 minutes, Swiatek wiped her perspiring face with the top of her white t-shirt.

No sweat, right?

The World No. 2 loves these desert courts and their high bounces -- comparable, some players say, to clay. At 23, Swiatek is already a four-time champion on the red clay of Roland Garros. Watching her cavort at Indian Wells feels like seeing otters splashing joyfully in a babbling brook.

It’s all about the RPM here, not necessarily the MPH. It’s an exceedingly spin-friendly environment.

“For sure, I feel like it makes it more visible, the topspin that I play,” Swiatek told reporters. “But I still have to play it. My game fits the surface here, yeah. The surface helps, but it’s not the only thing. You still need to do the job.”

Statistical mayhem

Speaking of which … It’s difficult to overstate Swiatek’s dominance in what is certainly her “Tennis Paradise.”

The numbers are beginning to verge on astounding:Swiatek is 20-2 at Indian Wells, a .909 winning percentage that is second only to Martina Navratilova’s pristine 10-0.

Of those 20 victories, 17 have come in straight sets -- a testament to Swiatek’s dominance here.

Since the format was introduced in 2009, Swiatek (.817, 103-23) only trails Serena Williams (.841, 148-28) for winning percentage at WTA 1000 events.

Only Victoria Azarenka (33) has registered more sets with a 6-0 scoreline in WTA 1000 events than Swiatek’s 31 since the format was introduced in 2009.

What does it feel like to be in the midst of a 6-0 run?

“I know that I'm in a good place and I’m going the right way,” Swiatek said. “So I feel pretty pumped up. But on the other hand, calm, because I don’t feel that I’m threatened.

“I know how it feels like. I don’t know how it looks, because I’m not even watching usually these matches where I played perfectly, because there is not much to change or analyze.”

Cookin’ with Iga

Friday, after winning her first match over Caroline Garcia, Swiatek revealed that she’s reading a book about cooking and embarking on some culinary experiments at her rented house. On Sunday, she offered an update, holding up a photo of the baked oatmeal with apple on her phone.

“Which looks better on picture,” she said, “than it tastes. I just needed to add a lot of yogurt. I know my friends tell me that I did it wrong, that I should have blended the oats before but I didn’t. I don't know, I’ll have to try again probably.”

The pasta with tuna and lemon sauces sounded more successful.

“It was, at the end, pretty great,” Swiatek said. “It’s not on a level yet to be a hobby. I’m just trying things out because I have a good kitchen here. Usually I’m too lazy to do that or I don’t have time. It’s just because I’m a bit bored.”

wtatennis.com

Karolina Muchova next for Iga, the first real test of the tournament I think. 

Muchova's level hasn't been as high as when they've previously faced one anther, but she'll still be able to give Iga a big challenge, one I'm confident Iga will be able to meet.

Should be a high quality match, really looking forward to it.

Jazda!

Iga Swiatek rolls in Indian Wells Opener

 

Defending champion Iga Swiatek of Poland breezed into the third round of the BNP Paribas Open with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over France's Caroline Garcia on Friday.

In a second-round clash between players who have both been ranked inside the Top 4 of the PIF WTA Rankings, it was No. 2 seed Swiatek who comprehensively prevailed, extending her head-to-head lead over former World No. 4 Garcia to 5-1.


"I [was] solid no matter what the score is, and I don't take [the] next games for granted," Swiatek said afterwards. "If I'm leading even 4-0, I know that I should keep playing the same way and keep the same attitude to just win the match."

0: Swiatek has never lost her opening match at Indian Wells in her five main-draw appearances at the event. Following her first-round bye, Swiatek maintained that record by besting Garcia in 1 hour and 1 minute on Friday.

6-for-9: Swiatek's return game was staggering on Friday, as she converted six of her nine break points. Swiatek won 58 percent of points returning the Garcia first serve, and 75 percent of points when the Frenchwoman was forced to put the second serve into play.

7: Former World No. 1 Swiatek is now on a seven-match winning streak at the BNP Paribas Open. Her last loss in the desert was to eventual champion Elena Rybakina in the 2023 semifinals.

3: Aside from that loss to Rybakina, Swiatek has been flawless at Indian Wells dating back to 2022. She won this title in 2022 and 2024, and she is aiming to become the first woman to hoist the Indian Wells champion's trophy three times.

4: In 2022, Swiatek followed her Indian Wells title by winning the Miami Open, becoming only the fourth player to pull off the Sunshine Double in women's singles. The others are Stefanie Graf (1994 and 1996), Kim Clijsters (2005) and Victoria Azarenka (2016).

37: By beating 71st-ranked Garcia, Swiatek has won her last 37 matches against players ranked outside the Top 50. Swiatek's last loss to a player ranked below No. 50 was to Elina Svitolina in the 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinals -- former World No. 3 Svitolina was ranked No. 76 at the time, during her comeback from maternity leave.

1-1: Swiatek will take on Dayana Yastremska in the third round, after Yastremska beat No. 32 seed Ons Jabeur 6-3, 6-1 earlier on Friday. Yastremska beat Swiatek in their first meeting at Billie Jean King Cup in 2019, but Swiatek finally leveled their head-to-head at 1-1 last month, when she defeated Yastremska in Dubai.

wtatennis.com


New outfit same old Iga :). Bit of rust here and there, but solid match overall.

Iga Swiatek 2-time Indian Wells Champion!

  

World No.1 Iga Swiatek rolled to her second BNP Paribas Open title on Sunday in Indian Wells by toppling Maria Sakkari -- who she beat 6-4, 6-1 to win in the California desert two years ago -- by a 6-4, 6-0 final score.

Swiatek won the last eight games of the 68-minute match, in which she won the first three in 15 minutes on court. Sakkari missed more balls than she made early on, as Swiatek won 12 of the first 15 points, but there was a match to be had for much of the first set. From 0-30 down on her serve in the fourth game, No.9 seed Sakkari won three straight games to level the first set at 3-3 -- but from 4-4, the World No.1 found another level.

By the end of the match, she broke Sakkari five times, and only lost five points in the second set. Behind 15 winners overall, Swiatek won 12 straight sets in her second BNP Paribas Open title run, and lost just 21 games.

“I'm really proud of myself,” Swiatek said afterwards. “I'm super happy. I mean, even though this tournament looked like, the scores, maybe I had everything under control, it wasn't from the beginning to the end so easy. So I'm happy I could improve during the tournament. I felt really good on the last two matches, big amount of confidence.

"I would say at the beginning of the tournament I felt like I didn't have much luck with the draw," Swiatek continued. "I played opponents that sometimes I struggled with. I lost against Linda [Noskova] in Australia this year. Then I was pretty stressed actually before facing Caroline Wozniacki [in the quarterfinals], because I felt like we haven't played in a while. I didn't really know how her game feels on my racquet. I just have huge respect for her. This was the kind of match where I had to kind of work through the stress.

"But then after that I just felt like I could actually play my game more freely."

Sakkari and Swiatek were the third pair of players to meet in multiple finals in Indian Wells, joining Martina Hingis and Lindsay Davenport (1998, 2000) and Kim Clijsters and Lindsay Davenport (2003, 05). The two have now split six career meetings, all of which have been decided in straight sets, and Swiatek has won the last three.

Swiatek now owns eight career WTA 1000 titles, and 19 career Hologic WTA Tour titles in all. She's now won at least two titles in each of the last four seasons.

wtatennis.com

I don't have much to say about this match really, other then absolutely outstanding. Just Iga being Iga. 

That's how legendary champions bounce back from a loss in a Grand Slam. 

Get some well deserved rest champ!. 

See you in Miami!.

More fun with Optaace stats

19 - Iga Swiatek is the player with the most titles after her first 23 WTA level finals in the Open Era (19, level with Chris Evert, Gail Sherriff and Nancy Richey). Incredible.


36 - Only Martina Navratilova (44) has won more top-10 matches within her first 50 such clashes in the last 40 years than Iga Swiatek (36). Unimaginable.


10 - Iga Swiatek is the first player to win 10+ consecutive matches against top-10 since … Iga Swiatek - she is the fourth player in 2000s with multiple such streaks after Venus Williams, Justine Henin and Serena Williams. Repeat.


3 - Iga Swiatek is the third player to secure multiple titles in Indian Wells before turning 23 after Serena Williams and Kim Clijsters. Paradise!

Iga Swiatek makes 2nd Indian Wells Final

World No.1 Iga Swiatek will play for her second BNP Paribas Open title on Sunday after beating No.31 seed Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine in Friday's semifinals, 6-2, 6-1.

Swiatek needed just about three quarters of an hour to build a set and a break lead in her second tour-level meeting against the Ukrainian -- who started her first career semifinal at WTA 1000 level or high erratically by making 15 unforced errors in the opening set. Kostyuk received a medical timeout after dropping serve for a fourth time in the match in the third game of set two, during which she appeared to jar her foot on the court surface at one stage, and though she continued the match, Swiatek eventually put a bow on victory after 69 minutes on court.

Swiatek will face No.9 Maria Sakkari in Sunday's final. The match is a rematch of the 2022 Indian Wells final, which Swiatek won 6-4, 6-1.

Read on for more stats from Swiatek's semifinal victory, which puts her into her second Hologic WTA Tour final of the season.

2016: Swiatek is the first No.1 seed to reach the Indian Wells final since Serena Williams in 2016. The last No.1 seed to win the title was Victoria Azarenka in 2012.

0: Swiatek did not face a break point in the match, and only dropped 10 points on serve. Conversely, she broke Kostyuk five times in six chances.

6: Swiatek only made six unforced errors in the match, striking 14 winners. Kostyuk hit 23 unforced errors to her 17 winners.

19: The win is Swiatek's 19th on tour this year, and breaks her tie for the tour lead with American Emma Navarro (18).

22: Swiatek is now 22-7 in her career in WTA semifinals, and she'll bid for her 19th career title on Saturday.

3: Swiatek is bidding for her third career WTA 1000 title as the No.1 seed. In addition to her victory in Doha last month, she also won the crown as the top seed in Rome two years ago.

10: Should she win Saturday's final, Swiatek will be the 10th woman all-time to win two Indian Wells titles. No woman has ever won more than two in tournament history.

17: Swiatek has not dropped a set en route to the final, and has only lost 17 games in five matches.

37: Swiatek has now made the final in 37% of the WTA 1000 main draws she's played in her career (10/27), which puts her ahead of Serena Williams (36.7%) for the highest rate since the format began in 2009.

26: Despite the loss, Kostyuk will reach a new career-high ranking of No.26 on Monday.

wtatennis.com

Well I certainly didn't have a rematch of the 2022 Indian Wells final on my bingo card. 

A nice surprise. 

Switching coaches for Sakkari (and hiring former coach of Pegula) is definitely working out.

Iga was pretty much flawless, it was her best match of the tournament if not the year thus far. 

I love watching her when she's this loose and in full flow (even smiling when she makes an error). 

Reminds me of watching Roger Federer when he was invincible. 

I'm 50/50 on wanting the match to be competitive, and hoping Iga does what only Iga can and dominate it. 

Although I'm fully expecting it to be a display of amazing physical prowess on both sides.

I think it'll definitely come down to who handles the occasion and their nerves better in the important moments. 

Jazda Iga as always we believe in you!.