For the first time, Polish tennis fans could witness two of their country’s best players face each other. On Wednesday afternoon, world number 2 Iga Świątek was opposed to Magda Linette in the third round of the China Open taking place in Beijing.

This 100% Polish semi-final was – as it was expected – one-sided. Świątek dominated the game from head to toe and left merely two games to her opponent (6-1 and 6-1).  

Before the match, Iga had already established a significant record in the history of Polish sport. She took over Agnieszka Radwańska in the number of WTA matches won in two years. Back in the years 2012-2013, Radwańska won 125 matches (63+62), more than any other player in such a short time so far. 

This record has been beaten by Świątek, who just won her 126th and 127th match in just two seasons. It is worth reminding that there are over two and a half months until the end of the 2023 season, which means that the former world number 1 is likely to make this record all the more difficult to beat in the future. 

A few weeks ago, Iga Świątek became the 10th female player in history to spend more than 71 weeks (75) on the throne of world number 1. The number 1 spot was then taken over by the Belorussian Aryna Sabalenka who is also in great form in the other side of the draw in Beijing. 

On Friday, Iga will play against the winner of the match, opposing the Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina and the French Carolina Garcia. The time of the match is still to be confirmed at the moment of writing. 

Image: X (@UniversTennis)

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen