The 2022 champion is looking very much like a title contender at the US Open.
Chris OddoAugust 31, 20262 minute read
Iga Swiatek is in cruise control.
The six-time major champion didn’t find top speed on the red clay this year, or at Wimbledon, but on the hard courts of North America she looks like her old self.
Four women are fighting for the No.1 ranking in Flushing Meadows this year, but Swiatek has as much chance as any of them to win the title, given the level of confidence and execution that she is playing with.
She continued her fine form on Monday, easing past China’s Wang Xiyu, 6-2, 6-3, to improve to 3-1 lifetime in first-round matches at the majors.
The 2022 US Open champion won her first title of the year a few weeks ago in Toronto, then backed that performance up with a semifinal run in Cincinnati. All the while she has played with clarity, asserting herself with penetrating depth, and pinpoint accuracy on the hard courts.
Tonight she was in dominant form from start to finish against Wang, taking her record to 11-1 so far in the North American hard court swing.
“I just feel like my work clicked,” she said, referring to her uptick in form since Wimbledon. “All these things that I needed to do with Francis [coach Francisco Roig], we were doing it from the beginning, but I feel like it’s more natural now – I don’t need to think about it. It became more automatic.”
It all adds up to a more relaxed, free-flowing brand of tennis from the 25-year-old.
“My game is a bit more calm, and I’m more patient, but I think I’m making better decisions on the court,” she said. “So I’m happy that this work paid off, and it’s getting the results now.”
Swiatek will face Argentina’s Nadia Podoroska in round two at the US Open.
