Madrid (Spain) – An exciting match in which nothing could be predicted until Aryna Sabalenka’s last ball. With 3h11 duration, lots of balance, tension, beatings and breathtaking moves, the decision of the WTA 1000 in Madrid was a clear demonstration that women’s tennis has a lot of competitiveness and value.
Winner of this battle between the two main players in the world today, Polish player Iga Swiatek poked at the critics and praised the match. “Who’s going to say now that women’s tennis is boring? Congratulations also to Aryna, because we both made an incredible effort today. Honestly, in the end I didn’t care if I won or lost. I was just happy to have overcome the stress I had in the first two sets. In a game like this, every millimeter counts, it’s crazy how much every detail matters. The only thing I had on my mind was playing the next shot better,” she said.
Trying to avoid any controversy, Swiatek made a point of not comparing women’s tennis with men’s tennis, but reinforced that the important thing is to value what each game can awaken in people. “If we had to play against a man, we would lose. It’s not about that, but about how two tennis players play against each other. I think we can play great matches. I’m number one, but I see players in the top 10 who can compete in very intense battles. It’s about the emotions it awakens in people. We shouldn’t compare the level of tennis, but what it generates when you watch tennis, which can be interesting and exciting,” he explains.
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The number 1 in the ranking also praised Sabalenka and thanked her opponent for the incredible duel this Saturday. “Aryna, [que façamos isso] for many other finals. It’s always a challenge to play with you. Thank you for motivating me and pushing me to be a better player. What you saw on the court today was very special”, highlighted the Polish player.
First title in Caixa Mágica
By winning the WTA in Madrid, Swiatek completed his private gallery in the circuit’s big clay events. Three-time Roland Garros champion and owner of two cups in Rome and Stuttgart, the Pole now triumphs on Spanish clay, in what was the last important tournament she had left. For her, however, this doesn’t have much weight at the moment. “When I look back in a few years it will mean a lot, but for now I’m happy to have won this tournament anyway. It doesn’t matter to me if I won before or not, I try to win every tournament,” said the 22-year-old tennis player.
She also spoke a little about the game and the emotional difficulties that a decision like this can bring. “I think it was more a question of who would be less nervous and who could play more freely. For most of the match, I felt that some decisions [dela] they were very brave. So in the end, I just wanted to be brave too. I don’t know what made the difference, but I think it was just a few details in the tiebreak. We both deserved to win today”, concluded the champion.
Polish woman breaks new marks
At 22 years and 338 days, Swiatek became the youngest player to win eight WTA titles on clay since Spain’s Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1994, at 22 years and 114 days. She also now has the best record in titles per tournament played on clay, with nine wins in 29 events (31%).
Since the current format of the women’s circuit was implemented in 2009, no other tennis player has reached 30%. The runner-up in this regard is the North American Serena Williams, with 26.5% (13 titles in 49 tournaments). Completing the top 5 are Belgian Kim Clijsters (18.2%, with two cups in 11 events), Russian Maria Sharapova (16%, with eight cups in 50 competitions) and Australian Ashleigh Barty (12%, with three wins in 25 championships).
Swiatek also reached a streak of eight consecutive victories in finals in the elite women’s circuit, being undefeated since the title in Stuttgart last year. Previously, she herself was the last to achieve more than seven consecutive victories in decisions, achieving an undefeated series of ten games in finals between her victories at Roland Garros in 2020 and the US Open in 2022.
In total number of titles in WTA 1000, she is equal to the Czech Petra Kvitova and the Romanian Simona Halep, all with nine trophies. Serena Williams, with 13, and Victoria Azarenka, with ten, are the biggest winners at this level of event. Finally, the 22-year-old has the fourth best average of victories on clay in the Open Era, with 44.4%. Ahead of her are only Chris Evert (68.7%), Margaret Court (52.5%) and Steffi Graf (50%).
Iga saves match-points, overcomes 3h battle and is champion
