MADRID – Coco Gauff decisively defeated Iga Swiatek on clay for the first time, winning 6-1, 6-1 on Thursday to advance to the Mutua Madrid Open final.
The match lasted a stunning 64 minutes and marked a significant breakthrough for the 21-year-old American, who has now won three consecutive matches against Swiatek. Previously, Swiatek held a dominant 11-1 head-to-head record and had beaten Gauff more than any other player.
Gauff, who will face Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday`s final, played an almost perfect match. After Swiatek won the opening game, Gauff won an incredible 11 consecutive games, securing 12 of the last 13 games played.
Gauff was dominant on her serve, dropping only two points on her first serve and hitting six aces. She won 57 out of 83 total points and did not face a single break point. Gauff recorded 18 winners against just four unforced errors, while Swiatek had seven winners and 21 unforced errors.
What made the difference?
“I think it was the mentality I had throughout the match,” Gauff said in her post-match interview. “I was aggressive and played with margin. Perhaps it wasn`t her best level.”
She added, “For me, it was just making sure my level stayed consistent. In the second set, I even elevated it.”
The last instance where Swiatek won two games or fewer on any surface was in a 6-0, 6-2 loss to Jelena Ostapenko in the Round of 32 in Birmingham.
This particular result was, frankly, hard to comprehend.
Swiatek, a four-time Roland Garros champion, is typically formidable on clay. Over the past 35 years, only Steffi Graf (.750) boasts a better winning percentage against WTA Top 10 players than Swiatek (.700).
In her post-match press conference, Swiatek was asked to explain what unfolded.
“Honestly, there’s not much to discuss because it was largely the same from start to finish,” she commented. “I couldn’t really raise my level. Coco played well, but ultimately, I think it was my fault that I didn’t move effectively and wasn’t prepared to return shots with pace. Given that kind of game, it was quite poor.”
This marked another challenging start for Swiatek. In her opening match, she recovered from being down a set and a break against teenager Alexandra Eala. In Wednesday`s quarterfinal versus Madison Keys, she lost the first set 6-0 before coming back to win in three sets.
In this match, she held her opening service game but then lost six consecutive games. This was the second consecutive day Swiatek finished a set by losing six straight games.
The sequence of events unfolded as follows: Gauff secured the first break in Swiatek`s second service game when Swiatek missed a backhand volley attempting to come forward, giving Gauff a 2-1 lead. Another break occurred when a loose backhand and a misplaced forehand put Gauff ahead 4-1. The third consecutive break, which sealed the set for Gauff on her second set point, came via a wide lunging backhand from Swiatek.
Gauff, whose serve has seemingly improved throughout the tournament, won every one of her nine first-serve points, including four aces, and never faced a break point. She hit 11 winners compared to only four unforced errors in the set. In contrast, Swiatek recorded 13 unforced errors and just five winners.
This pattern continued into the second set. Gauff broke Swiatek`s serve for the fourth straight time (and the eighth consecutive game overall) with a sharp forehand winner. Swiatek`s frustration was apparent, leading to an uncharacteristic code violation for an audible obscenity.
Swiatek`s movement, typically a major strength, seemed absent. She frequently struggled in the court`s corners when attempting to recover and return to a central position.
“I believe I pushed myself mentally beyond what was helpful from a tennis perspective,” Swiatek stated. “Today, everything just seemed to fall apart, both my tennis game and my footwork; I didn’t feel like I was properly positioned before hitting the ball. I wish I had moved better, as I think that would have given me a chance to recover, which is usually how I manage.”
While trailing 5-0, Swiatek finally held her serve, but Gauff completed the victory in the next game, winning it to love with another unreturnable serve.
