19-year-old Iga Swiatek Wins French Open By Beating Sofia Kenin
19-year-old Polish teenager Iga Swiatek has beaten top seed and World No. 2 Simona Halep to lift the French Open trophy.
Before her fourth round clash against top seed and World No. 2 Simona Halep, 19-year-old Polish teenager Iga Swiatek made a rather bizarre comment in her press conference. She said she wanted to focus on her tennis career for the next two years and put herself in position to be among the top 10, failing which she would quit the sport and go to university.
Swiatek became the youngest player to reach the French Open women’s final in 19 years when she crushed Argentine qualifier Nadia Podoroska 6-2 6-1.
The 19-year-old will meet Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin in her maiden final appearance at a major.
Swiatek had too much poise and power for world number 131 Podoroska, who was looking to become the first qualifier to reach a final at a major in either the men’s or women’s singles draws.
“I’m kind of surprised, really. I always knew that if I would be in a Grand Slam final, it would be at the French Open,” Swiatek said on court.
“I wanted to play this match as a first-round match, I didn’t want to think of it as a semi-final otherwise I would have been too stressed.”
Keen follower of women’s tennis would have been familiar with Swiatek – who won the junior Wimbledon singles title and the junior French Open doubles title in 2018 – even before Sunday. The Pole also reached her first WTA final last year, and then made the fourth round at this year’s Australian Open.
There have been many teens who have put on sporadic impressive displays in recent years, but what was different about Swiatek’s win was the sheer variety in her game. She showed us her solid serve (Swiatek won 81% of her first serve points and did not face a single break point in the match), her big forehand – which she used to pound winners at will – as well as an imposing crosscourt backhand that moved Halep well beyond the doubles alley.
The Pole struck 30 winners to 20 unforced errors, and stats on the television feed showed that she was hitting her groundstrokes at the same average speed as US Open men’s champion Dominic Thiem. She also used the drop shot to great effect several times in the match, and was able to come to the net and finish off points effectively too (she won eight out of nine points at the net).
Early on in the second set, Swiatek was unable to convert several break points on Halep’s serve, and many wondered if that would be the opportunity for Halep to come back and turn the match around. But the Pole remained rock solid on her serve and eventually managed to break Halep twice in the second set (she ended the match with 4 off 14 break points), before holding on for the biggest win of her young career so far.
Whether Iga Swiatek is ready to win a Grand Slam yet remains to be seen (as per some bookies, she is now the favorite for the women’s title). The draw is certainly wide open, with third seed Elina Svitolina – who is still looking to reach her first Grand Slam final – being the only seed remaining in her half of the draw.
But after her performance Swiatek has certainly shown us that she has the game and the mindset to become a top player. Even if not at Roland Garros this year, she will likely be hoisting aloft many big trophies in the years to come.
