Swiatek Returns to Her Comfort Zone

Iga is an extraordinary tennis player. The competition on clay has begun and it will be scary for other tennis players.

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Swiatek's victory over Mertens marks her ninth consecutive win in Stuttgart without a loss. Her eight previous wins resulted in her being crowned champion in the women's singles division, holding the top world ranking for the past two years.

Swiatek also has the opportunity to become like Tracy Austin, Martina Navratilova and Maria Sharapova, namely winning the WTA Stuttgart for three consecutive years or more. Sharapova was the last tennis player to score a winning hat trick, in 2012-2014.

"There is still a place for a Porsche car. Maybe I will build a garage in the basement," joked Swiatek after defeating Mertens. The car mentioned by Swiatek was a gift from Porsche, as the main sponsor, for the tournament's champion.

The clay court, with its top layer made of crushed bricks, is Swiatek's comfort zone. This is at least evident in her winning statistics on the court, which is 88 percent, higher than her winning percentage on hard courts (79 percent) and grass courts (68 percent).

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Her performance in the last three seasons on the slow-paced field is considered fantastic. In 2021, Swiatek won 12 times and lost twice on clay. The following year, she only lost once out of 19 matches, while in 2023, her win-loss record was 19-2. Those numbers are part of her 64 wins and only nine losses on clay courts throughout her career.

"Iga is an extraordinary tennis player. The competition on the clay court has started and this will be intimidating for other tennis players," commented Czech tennis player, Marketa Vondrousova, who will face Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals of the WTA Stuttgart.

Winning the championship for the third time in Stuttgart, Swiatek did not deny that it was a pressure for her. She has experienced it in other tournaments, such as when she played at the WTA 1000 Doha in February after becoming a champion in 2022 and 2023.

"I cannot avoid the pressure of being the favorite champion in a tournament. It haunted me when I performed in Doha and was difficult to let go of. However, at the moment, I am trying not to think about it too much," said Swiatek.

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To reduce the burden, Swiatek shifted her focus to her nearest challenge, which is to fight against Raducanu on Friday night local time or early Saturday morning Indonesian time. This match will be their third meeting, after Swiatek won in two other matches, one of which was in the quarter-finals in Stuttgart in 2022.

"It seems that Emma is back to her best performance. It's so enjoyable to see that because she does have the potential. So, it won't be easy to beat her. She knows how to move on clay courts and hit the ball with a good spin," said Swiatek on the official WTA website.

Raducanu moves on to the quarterfinals after defeating Linda Noskova, 6-0, 7-5, in the second round. In the first round, she defeated senior tennis player Angelique Kerber, 6-2, 6-1.

Those two victories were added to another two victories when she represented Great Britain in the Billie Jean King Cup women's team championship against France last week, making it four consecutive victories after she became champion at the 2021 US Open Grand Slam.

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Raducanu achieved a phenomenal feat when she became the champion of the 2021 US Open after crawling up from the qualifying rounds, but afterwards she struggled to maintain her performance. After climbing from the 150th rank to the 23rd rank in the world following the US Open, she is now only ranked 303rd in the world.

He arrived in Stuttgart with high self-confidence, thanks to two victories in the Billie Jean King Cup. Moreover, the victories over Caroline Garcia and Diane Parry were obtained on clay courts.

"Since I was young, I actually enjoyed playing on clay courts. I like to move by sliding on it," said the 21-year-old tennis player.

However, Raducanu did not set any expectations for her match against Swiatek. Moreover, she is tired after playing in the Billie Jean King Cup. "So, whatever the result is, it will have a positive impact on me. If I win, of course, it's good, but if I lose, I can take a rest," she said.

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The winner of the Swiatek vs Raducanu competition will face the winner of another quarterfinal match, Elena Rybakina vs Jasmine Paolini. As for the winner of the Sabalenka vs Vondrousova match, they will face either Marta Kostyuk or Cori Gauff in the semifinals.

Victory path

In the Barcelona ATP 500 men's tournament, Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas were in winning path and will appear in the quarterfinals. Ruud as the third seed will face Matteo Arnaldi, while Tsitsipas (fifth seed) will face Facundo Diaz Acosta.

Ruud and Tsitsipas are the two top seeds remaining after Andrey Rublev (2) was eliminated in the second round, Alex De Minaur (4) lost in the third round, and Carlos Alcaraz (1) withdrew due to injury. In fact, De Minaur performed well in the second round when he beat Rafael Nadal, 7-5, 6-1.

For Nadal, the ATP Barcelona tournament is the second tournament this year after the ATP Brisbane in January. He stated that his performance in Barcelona will be his last after winning 12 championships.

The former world number one from Spain plans to end his journey in the professional tennis arena in 2024. He has not said which tournament will be his final stage, but Nadal plans to play in French Open, May 26-June 9, Grand Slam which he won 14 times. (AFP)