Iga Swiatek will be playing in the 2023 WTA Finals semifinal, and all she needed was a little help from Marketa Vondrousova.
The Polish player had a great start to her 2023 WTA Finals campaign, securing a commanding win over Marketa Vondrousova, and then doing the same thing against Coco Gauff in her second match.
Because of how the WTA Finals format works (round-robin stage), thanks to dominant wins, Swiatek had nearly a 100% chance of advancing, yet, for things to be official, she needed to wait for the conclusion of the match between Coco Gauff and Marketa Vondrousova.
However, she eventually didn't have to do that, as the Czech player won the opening set before losing the match, so already after the first set of play, Swiatek knew she was into the semifinals, as there was no scenario that would see her outside of the Top 2 places in her group.
Despite already qualifying for the semifinals, the Pole played her last round-robin match against Ons Jabeur. The Tunisian still could qualify for the semifinals, but Swiatek had also a lot to play for, as every win in the round-robin stage nets 125 points.
The world no. 2 is fighting for the top spot in the WTA Rankings, and that's why she needed the win. Despite very challenging conditions, the 22-year-old handled the match really well.
After both players held their service in the opening two games, the second seed won five consecutive games to win the opening set 6-1, and that was the point when it was clear that no one would steal the first spot in the group from her.
But as committed as she is, Swiatek continued charing towards a two-set win, and she managed to do that only in an hour and nine minutes. The Polish player won the match 6-1, 6-2, joining Jessica Pegula as undefeated player in the round-robin stage.
in the semifinals, Swiatek will play against Aryna Sabalenka, in what will be almost a direct world no. 1 showdown. If the Belarusian wins, she will stay the world no. 1 after the 2023 WTA Finals, if the Polish player wins, she needs to win also the final to become the top-ranked player.
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