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World No. 1 Iga Switek won her way to the WTA Tour with a 6-1, 6-4 win over China’s Zeng Qinwen.
Zheng had pushed Swiatek to three sets in their previous two matches, but this time the ranking queen was not to be denied.
Swiatek needed 1 hour and 26 minutes to extend her losing streak in Stuttgart to five matches.
Swiatek takes power through 🔋 @iga_swiatek Beating Zheng, he will face Pliskova in the quarterfinals in Stuttgart.
#PorcheTennis pic.twitter.com/2tGmr2YLmK
— wta (@WTA) April 20, 2023
The Poles advanced to the quarter-finals with former champion and former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova, who beat Donna Vekic in third place after 2 hours 20 minutes and into the last eight.
«I felt that I had to concentrate 100% from the beginning to the end to think about technique and tactics,» said Swiatek. «I’m very happy that I’m not rusty and I’m very happy that I can play good tennis even though I’m taking a break.»
Swiatek, playing for the first time in 45 days, didn’t miss a beat though as she extended her head-to-head lead to 3-0 against the WTA Newcomer of the Year.
She broke Zheng twice in each set to win the match, which was highlighted by a banana skin for the defending champion.
Swiatek did not face a break point in her first seven service games and was pleased to be able to press her game against Zeng.
In fact, Swiatek was only broken once on her way to a 6-1, 4-2 lead.
Then Zeng finally grabbed the back-to-back games, digging deep in a gritty game for the first break point of the match with a stunning backhand winner in the eighth game of the second set.
However, Swiatek had an answer to Zeng’s challenge.
«She’s really talented, and everyone can see that,» Swiatek said. “I had to adjust, and I’m happy to focus on myself, on what I want to do… and I feel very comfortable. So I’m happy to be able to show my good tennis.
Swiatek has recovered from injury and is in good contact ahead of the clay swing.
«I’m not injured anymore, so that’s the most important thing for me,» Swiatek said at Stuttgart’s media day.
«I feel like I used that time in Warsaw very well to rest a bit and not think about tennis.
“I’ve still been working on a bit physically and I’m obviously getting back into training step by step. Look, I think I’m ready.»
