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Iga Swiatek’s resounding victory against Coco Gauff in their latest China Open fixture has amazed tennis fans.
World No. 2 Swiatek and World No. 3 Gauff locked horns in the semifinals of the 2023 China Open on Saturday, October 7. The pair shared the court for the fourth time this year, with the American having just recently earned her first-ever win over the Pole en route to the Cincinnati title.
Many expected Swiatek to be low on confidence entering the contest due to her recent string of defeats and Gauff’s unavoidable dominance. However, the match proved to be just the opposite.
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She produced a clinical performance to knock out the newly crowned US Open champion. Swiatek dished out 94.7% first serves, of which she came out on top 88.9% of the times. Gauff, meanwhile, was able to place 52% of her first serves in and won 61.5% of those points.
Swiatek broke Gauff a total of four times, twice in each set, but did not award a single break point opportunity to the opponent. The World No. 2 concluded the fixture in her favor in one hour and 19 minutes, with the score reading 6-2, 6-3.
It is worth noting that this was Iga Swiatek’s eighth win over Coco Gauff in their nine-match rivalry.
Tennis fans online were left amazed by Gauff’s surprising decline as opposed to the four-time Grand Slam champion’s convincing display and visible recovery in form.
“Not everyone is mentally built to handle being no. 1. That’s why the legends of the sport are so special,” one fan said.
“Sharp and focused from the first ball to the last. Ruthless performance. Oh she's back....” another fan said.
One fan marveled at the fact that Iga Swiatek ended Coco Gauff's 16-match win streak -- the longest by a WTA player in 2023. The streak incidentally started at the Cincinnati Open, when the American defeated the Pole in the semifinal.
"Iga started Coco's streak in Cincinnati and Iga ended it here. That's what happens in tennis," the fan wrote.
Here are a few more reactions from tennis fans:
Iga Swiatek will take on Liudmila Samsonova in the China Open final after victory over Coco Gauff
Iga Swiatek is through to her seventh final of 2023 and is in pursuit of a fifth title. If she wins, she will become the Sole title leader of the season, overtaking Coco Gauff, who has won four titles as well.
The China Open is also the Pole’s third final at the WTA 1000 level in 2023. She has, however, not won a title in the category this year, having lost both such finals in Dubai and Madrid to Barbora Krejcikova and Aryna Sabalenka, respectively.
The 22-year-old will now look to make the most of the last opportunity as she takes on Liudmila Samsonova in the China Open summit clash on Sunday.
Swiatek will fancy her chances against the Russian, having won both their previous clashes. The pair mostly recently met in the Round of 16 of the Dubai Tennis Championships, where the World No. 2 earned an emphatic 6-1, 6-0 victory.
