World number two Iga Swiatek produced a remarkable comeback
as she came from behind to beat Barbora Krejcikova in her WTA Finals opener.
The mega-event, which is the last in the women’s tennis calendar, is being
played in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for the first time ever, where the top eight
players from women’s tennis are taking part to secure the ultimate prize.
Before coming into the match, both players faced off four
times and won two each. Their most recent meeting before today was in February
last year, when Krejcikova came out on top in Dubai in straight sets with a
score of 6-4, 6-2.
In the first set of the match, Krejcikova was too hot to
handle as she won it with a score of 6-4. The lack of discipline ended up
costing the world number two as she committed 19 unforced errors in the first
set. In comparison, her opponent committed 11 unforced errors. Krejcikova also converted
a break point, whereas the Polish tennis star failed to win any of her three
break points.
In the second set, Krejcikova looked to have sealed the match
after taking a 3-0 lead, but Swiatek made a grand comeback and won four
games in a row. She ended up winning the set with a score of 7-5. Swiatek ended
up producing 18 winners in the second set, eight more than her opponent. She
won 55 percent service points as well.
In the third set, Swiatek started brightly as she won the
first five games, breaking the serve of her opponent on two consecutive occasions.
It took Krejcikova six games to finally win a game in the final set. She managed to put some fight as she broke the serve of Swiatek but it was too little too late as the five-time Grand Slam winner went
on to seal the game with a score of 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.
2024 WTA Finals (11-03)
Center Court
Group Stage - 3rd |
8Barbora Krejcikova |
6 5 0 |
2Iga Swiatek |
4 7 3 |
Group Stage - 11/3 - 10:15 AM EST |
6Jessica Pegula |
|
3Coco Gauff |
|