Defending champion Iga Swiatek mounted a comeback from a set and a break down to defeat Alexandra Eala in three sets, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, at the Mutua Madrid Open on Thursday. This hard-fought victory prevented a second consecutive WTA 1000 event loss to the young Filipino player.
Having been surprisingly defeated by Eala in straight sets in the Miami quarterfinals earlier this year, Swiatek seemed headed for another upset in Madrid when she trailed 6-4, 3-2. However, the World No. 2 found her composure, winning five straight games from 4-4 in the second set before completing her 2-hour and 15-minute recovery.
This result also meant Swiatek avoided her earliest exit from a WTA 1000 tournament in almost four years, a streak stretching back to the second round of the 2021 Cincinnati Open. Furthermore, she extended her winning streak in opening matches at Hologic WTA Tour events to 58, a run that began after a round-robin loss to Maria Sakkari at the 2021 year-end championships (this record includes United Cup and WTA Finals matches).
Post-match, Swiatek commented, “It wasn`t easy to find my rhythm and feel the timing, so I`m happy that I stayed patient.”
Swiatek accumulated 25 of her total 57 unforced errors in the first set but finished the match strongly with 40 winners. She significantly improved her serve throughout the encounter, winning 85% of points on her first serve after struggling below 60% in the initial two sets. Her return game also sharpened, leading to seven breaks of Eala`s serve from 16 opportunities.
Reflecting on the rematch, Eala stated, “I`m happy with the match, happy with how I competed. Being up a set and a break is a great position, but you have to remember you`re playing against someone on the other side, especially a multiple Roland Garros champion. She played well too… There are things to learn and take from this.”
Eala added that the key difference from their Miami encounter was that Swiatek “executed better in the important moments” and “had a slightly higher level than me in specific points.”
Swiatek`s next challenge, as she seeks her first final appearance of the season, will be against No. 31 seed Linda Noskova, another player who has caused her difficulties in the past. While Swiatek has won their last three encounters since her loss to Noskova at last year`s Australian Open, two of those matches were three-setters. Swiatek might take some relief knowing that Jelena Ostapenko, who holds a dominant 6-0 record against her, was defeated by her compatriot Anastasija Sevastova during Swiatek`s match against Eala.
Rupert Caldwell