Iga Swiatek won yet another trophy at the recently concluded Indian Wells Open, which led Martina Navratilova to proclaim her the best front-runner since Serena Williams.
There was some skepticism about the Polish player when she first became world number one. She did have that absurd 37-match winning streak, but not many people were quite ready to declare that that's who she really was.
The sport was at an odd moment, with Ashleigh Barty retiring and Naomi Osaka not playing her best. None of the other players stepped up either, so there seemed to be a vacuum at the top, which Swiatek filled.
By now, some two years later, the Polish player is firmly the number one in many people's eyes. We've had a couple of players step up and become better, and she's still on top, winning trophies.
Her most recent one came at the recently concluded Indian Wells Open, where she beat Maria Sakkari in the final. The win showed former WTA player Martina Navratilova, who spoke to Sky Sports, that Swiatek isn't going anywhere, and she thinks of her as the best number one since Serena Williams.
" It looked like it was going to be a blowout at 3-0, but Maria [Sakkari] brought it back. The only challenge she had was winning the first set and keeping Iga a little reaching, but she wasn't at all."
"When she [Swiatek] won the first set, lights out. I mean, she is the best front-runner we have had in the game for a long time, since Serena Williams."
That's really high praise from Navratilova, as we saw some pretty good players in recent years. Swiatek does seem to be on track to have an amazing career.
She's already put together a hall-of-fame-worthy resume, and she's only 22. That's pretty impressive. Who knows what the coming years will bring?
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