Iga Swiatek
continues to set records, and this time, she has matched
Victoria Azarenka and
Martina Hingis at the 2023
US Open, only surpassed by
Serena Williams.
The Polish
sensation has been dominating the WTA Tour since the retirement of Ashleigh
Barty that year. After an incredible 2022 season, she has faced strong
competition this year from players like Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina.
Nevertheless,
Swiatek remains a dominant force in most of her matches and retains her
position as the World No. 1.
Swiatek's
dominance over her opponents has translated into an impressive number of bagel
sets, and she has now secured her eighth 6-0 set of the year in Grand Slams,
equaling the records set by Victoria Azarenka in 2012 and Martina Hingis in
2001.
So far, she
is only surpassed by Serena Williams' incredible 13 bagels in Grand Slams in
2013.
At the
Australian Open, Swiatek notched her first bagel against Cristina Bucsa (6-0,
6-1). In the French Open, where she emerged as the champion, she secured
another bagel against Bucsa (6-4, 6-0), followed by one against Claire Liu
(6-4, 6-0) and an astounding double bagel against China's Wang Xinyu (6-0,
6-0).
During
Wimbledon, she added one more against Sara Sorribes Tormo (6-2, 6-0). Now, at
the US Open, she has recorded bagels against Rebecca Peterson (6-0, 6-1) and
Kaja Juvan (6-0, 6-1).
The
possibility of matching or surpassing Serena Williams is a distant one since,
in the best-case scenario, Swiatek would play four more Grand Slam matches this
year, assuming she reaches the final.
Nonetheless,
the Polish star remains focused on advancing round by round to defend her title
from the previous year and maintain her World No. 1 ranking.
Aryna
Sabalenka is closely trailing her, with a significant chance of claiming the
top spot in the rankings for the first time in her career. Swiatek will face
World No. 21 Jelena Ostapenko in the fourth round.
Ostapenko
has proven to be a tough opponent for Swiatek, having won all three of their
previous encounters, two on hardcourts and one on grass.