Iga Swiatek says she is in a ‘good place’ ahead of her showdown against Coco Gauff in the semi-finals of the China Open on Saturday.
The former world No.1 sealed her place in the last four of the event with a roller-coaster 6-7(8), 7-6(5), 6-1, win over France’s Caroline Garcia in the quarter-finals. Swiatek failed to convert a set point during the opening tiebreak and then lost a 4-1 lead in the second set before sealing victory. It is the third time in her career that she has beaten Garcia on the Tour.
“In both of these first sets, every ball counted. I’m happy that in the third I could just go for it,” said Swiatek. “I didn’t really have any kind of setbacks, even though I knew I could win this first set, I was happy with the way I played.”
Swiatek’s latest win is her 61st of the season which is more than any other player on the WTA Tour. It is the 11th time this year she has reached a tournament semi-final and the first since Cincinnati where she was beaten by Gauff who she will next play.
Gauff dropped only 6 games during her 6-2, 6-4, triumph over world No.6 Maria Sakkari in Beijing. The 19-year-old is currently on a 16-match winning streak and is aiming to win her third title in a row. Furthermore, she has now impressively won seven out of her last eight matches against top 10 players.
“I know also how she plays, what she’s improved and what she changed,” Swiatek said of the American. “I’m going to use that information and not overanalyze because I think we’re both good players. ‘
“Now we just have to kind of both fight. I’m sure it’s not going to be an easy match. It’s going to be tight. But I just hope I’ll play a good game.”
In their head-to-head Swiatek has a commanding 7-1 lead with her most significant victory occuring in the final of the 2022 French Open. However, Gauff won their most recent meeting at the Cincinnati Open and claimed her maiden Grand Slam title since then.
“it’s gonna be a tough match. We had a tough match against each other in Cincinnati. But I’m really excited and focused to play tomorrow,” Gauff said after beating Sakkari.
This week Swiatek is seeking to win her 16th WTA trophy and first since July. However, silverware isn’t her number one priority following what has been a mixed couple of weeks on the Tour. She lost her No.1 ranking at the US Open where she was beaten in the fourth round by Jelena Ostapenko. Then in Tokyo, she lost in the quarter-finals to Veronika Kudermetova.
“I’m just happy to play good tennis and not make too many mistakes and be solid. I’m already happy with how that tournament went for me after what I kind of felt after the US Open and Tokyo.” She concluded.
