Barbora Krejcikova keeps Iga Swiatek-beating technique to herself, likes her chances against the Pole ahead of Dubai final

Barbora Krejcikova is one of only two women to have beaten Iga Swiatek in a WTA final, and the only one to have managed the feat after the Pole won her maiden title in 2020.

After Swiatek had won 10 straight finals, Krejcikova put an end to her streak at the 2022 Ostrava Open. She was cheered on by a raucous Czech crowd that stayed with her every step of the way.

Now, the former French Open winner will take on the World No. 1 in another final, this time at the 2023 Dubai Tennis Championships.

Krejcikova was recently quizzed on how she managed to beat Swiatek in Ostrava at her press conference after her 6-1, 5-7, 6-0 win over Jessica Pegula in the semifinals. However, she dodged the question with characteristic guile.

Joking that she was definitely not going to divulge any trade secrets, the Czech remarked that she was looking forward to the challenge herself. She also admitted that it would be a huge task for her.

However, the former French Open winner made one thing clear. She liked her chances against Iga Swiatek and said she had a concrete plan that could push her opponent onto the back foot.

"Well, I'm definitely not going to tell you what I'm going to do tomorrow, how I beat her in Ostrava. I have to say, it's always a huge challenge. I love challenges," Krejcikova said.

"I expect it's going to be really difficult because she's in a great form and she's playing well. I believe that I'm playing well, as well. I think that I can find a plan that can push her on a back leg. I believe that I have a chance."

Barbora Krejcikova then spoke about her own development as a player. She stated that she was working with a sports psychologist to keep her mentally ready to take on tasks of such dizzying magnitude.

"There are different techniques that I can do. I mean, I'm an athlete, so I do have a sports psychologist. I mean, I talk to her on a weekly basis. I mean, we go through some stuff," Krejcikova said.

"We are trying to figure out where I need to get better. I mean, every single week I'm working on it. I'm just telling her, like, how I felt, a summary of the week. That's how we go on."

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"My game is improving with every match and I'm really happy with that" - Barbora Krejcikova

Barbora Krejcikova at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis

Barbora Krejcikova admitted during the press conference that her win over a top player like Jessica Pegula gave her a lot of confidence. She added that she believed her game was improving with every match.

However, the Czech was aware that facing Iga Swiatek in the final would be a different beast altogether, thought it was a challenge that did not faze her.

"I mean, it definitely gives me a lot of confident. I think my game is improving with every match and I'm really happy with that. I mean, tomorrow is going to be new match, new day, different player, different day definitely," Barbora Krejcikova said.

"I mean, I just have to sleep well today and just try to prepare the best way because I'm going to be playing the best player in the world."