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By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday April 23, 2022

 
Iga Swiatek

Iga Swiatek notched her 22nd consecutive victory, rallying from a set down to defeat Liudmila Samsonova on Saturday in Stuttgart.

Photo: Getty

Whether she blasts past her opposition with relative ease, as she had done in her last 14 matches and 28 sets, or is forced to battle tooth-and-nail to assure a hard-won victory, the theme remains the same: Iga Swiatek finds a way.

Tennis Express

On Saturday in Stuttgart the World No.1 continued to thrive despite adversity, rallying from a set down to take out Liudmila Samsonova, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-5 for her 22nd consecutive victory. Swiatek has now won six of the last seven matches in which she has dropped the opening set (compared to 4-12 in such matches in 2020 and 2021).

The victory assures Swiatek a spot alongside Aryna Sabalenka, who defeated Paula Badosa 7-6(5), 6-4 on Saturday, in the final.


“I loosened up and I could play really fearlessly,” remarked Swiatek after the match. “She was serving really, really fast and all credit to her, I think she had a great run and she’s playing really great tennis. I was playing on top of my game and it was tough.”

Samsonova snapped Swiatek’s run of 28 consecutive sets won by taking the 71-minute opening set with a brilliant performance in the tiebreak. World No.31 Samsonova rallied from 4-1 down in the set, and saved four break points at 4-4 to push through and take a one set lead.

The tension remained for the rest of the match, and Samsonova rallied twice from a break down in the third set, before Swiatek broke critically for 6-5 and served out the match in the next game to close out the three hour and three-minute contest.

The Pole improves to 31-3 on the season – she has not lost since since she fell to Jelena Ostapenko in Dubai in the round of 16, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(4). Her winning streak has seen her lock down titles in Doha, Indian Wells and Miami.

Swiatek saved five of eight break points in the contest and converted five of 15.

She will bid for her seventh WTA title on Sunday; Sabelenka will bid for her 11th.

 

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