In the night from Friday to Saturday, Iga Świątek qualified for the semi-finals of the WTA Finals in Cancun after an easy win against the Tunisian Ons Jebeur. The Pole will face her biggest rival on the tour, Belorussia’s Aryna Sabalenka, for a place in the final. 

Despite the difficult weather conditions, Iga has not lost a single set so far in Mexico. In her first match, she disposed of the Czech Marketa Vondrousova (7-6;6-0), before outplaying the young American Coco Gauff (6-0;7-6). She validated her ticket for the semi-final by giving a tennis lesson to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur (6-1;6-2). 

Świątek qualified for the final stage of the WTA Finals as the first of her group in front of Coco Gauff and will now play the world number 1 Aryna Sabalenka. Things are quite simple. If Sabalenka wins the match, she will end the season as world number 1. However, if Iga wins this game and also the final, she will be back on top of the charts at least until January. 

It is worth reminding that at only 22, the Varsovian is the 10th player with the weeks (75) spent as world number. In the category of the most searched female athletes in 2023, Świątek finished number 1 by far with (15.6M), in front of Coco Gauff (10.1M) and Emma Raducanu (9.6M). 

The Polish champion continues to impress with her remarkable statistics. Her most recent win against Jabeur was her 66th victory of the season and the 9th in a row. Will she be able to defeat Sabalenka? The winner of this important confrontation should be known by Sunday morning.

Image: X @JJlovesTennis

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen