Iga Swiatek once again had to bring her A-game to save Poland from elimination, and this time, she beat Jasmine Paolini at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
Initially, it seemed that Poland would have to compete at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals without their biggest star. Like in the years prior, Swiatek didn't sign up for the competition, but this time, she surprisingly changed her decision and announced her participation in the tournament.
So far, her presence has been vital for the Polish team, as she won every single time she stood on the court. In the first tie against Spain, she bested Paula Badosa, but in the grand scheme of things, that win was not so essential, as she could have lost that match and still have doubles to try and advance.
That didn't apply to her second match at the event. Poland was 0-1 down against the Czech Republic, and Swiatek first beat Linda Noskova before teaming up with Katarzyna Kawa to win in doubles as well and secure the semi-final spot for her country.
In the semi-final, she once again faced the same scenario. Her compatriot, Magda Linette, lost to Lucia Bronzetti, 4-6, 6-7(3), and Swiatek played against Jasmine Paolini in a must-win match for her country.
The Italian player has been in great form this year, and the same applies to the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, as she, too, won her singles and doubles matches against Japan to send her country to this stage.
Taking on Swiatek, who she lost against every time they played before, Paolini was motivated to change that record, but she fell behind already in the first set of the match.
The Polish player broke first, leading 3-2, and it looked like she would be able to control the remainder of the set. But that was far from the truth. Very far.
Paolini played inspired four games. She immediately broke back, and after that, she added one more break of serve to lead 5-3 and serve for the set. When serving for the set, she was down 0-40, with three consecutive break points for her opponent, but the Italian won five points in a row to win the first set 6-3.
Poland was not only down 0-1, but Swiatek was also down 0-1 in her match, facing an incredibly uphill battle. Still, with pure determination and plenty of skill, she showed why she occupied the World No. 1 spot for 125 weeks.
The World No. 2 player saved five break points in the second set before she had her first chance to break. She didn't use it, but she then had two more break points, which were also set points, in the tenth game.
This time, she could convert, winning the second set 6-4 and sending the match into the decider. Paolini started that third set better, working her way to four break points already in the third game.
Unfortunately for her and Italian fans, she couldn't convert any of those. Swiatek punished her by breaking immediately after, but the Pole also lost her one-break advantage with her opponent storming back to level the score.
However, once again, at the worst possible moment for Paolini, Swiatek applied pressure on her opponent, creating a break point chance in the tenth game, which again was a set point and, in this case, also a match point.
Swiatek again converted it to win the match 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, securing her country the deciding match. Coach Dawid Celt almost immediately changed the country's nomination for the doubles, again putting Swiatek together with Katarzyna Kawa, with the duo taking on Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani.
After the match, the Polish player remained focused on the mission. She knows that leveling the score of the tie means nothing if she loses in the doubles match, and many could certainly see a similarity with Kobe Bryant's famous 'job's not finished' quote.
"I still have work to do. So, no time to celebrate."
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