On Sunday afternoon, Iga Świątek defeated the Russian Ludmila Samsonova in a one-sided final of the China Open that lasted only one hour and ten minutes.
The match started calmly with both players keeping their serve. While leading 3-2, Świątek took her chance and broke her opponent at the first chance she got to do so. From that moment on, Samsonova could not turn back the tide in this first set (6-2). In the second set, Iga broke even faster and cruised with authority to the victory, leaving no chances to her rival (6-2). Both sets lasted merely thirty-five minutes.
This was Świątek’s 130th win in just seasons – a quite remarkable achievement and a record among Polish players. As the WTA noted on its official X account, Iga Świątek became the first player to win five or more titles in back-to-back seasons since Serena Williams in 2015 and 2016.
Moreover, this triumph allows the Varsovian to get significantly closer to Aryna Sabalenka in the new WTA ranking. Sabalenka’s advance is melting quickly. The Belorussian is only 465 points ahead of the Pole now. Given the fact that Sabalenka won this year’s Australian Open and will therefore have a lot of point to defend, Świątek could be back on the throne of world number 1 in the first months of 2024 – if not earlier. The Pole is already assured of remaining at least number 2 until the end of January.
Iga proves yet again her efficiency in the most important moments. She won 16 out of the 20 finals she played on tour so far. Her overall win-loss ratio is now of 266 to 64, which made her enter the all-time top 10 in this regard among female players having won at least 200 matches (80.6%).
Image: X (@wta)
Author: Sébastien Meuwissen