Porsche Tennis Grand Prix: Iga Swiatek hardly gives Lys a chance, Pliskova wins Krimi
Iga Swiatek (WTA No. 1) made a convincing start at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix 2022, beating Eva Lys smoothly.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Apr 20, 2022, 04:28 pm
Swiatek has been the measure of all things lately, and now, at the start of the season on her favorite surface, clay, she hardly seems to want to get away from it.
In their first encounter at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix 2022, the world number one beat Eva Lys, who was the same age, 6:1, 6:1 and showed a largely flawless performance.
Lys came up with a cue ball in her first service game, but then faced a 0:5, which of course always sounds smoother in tennis than you might think. Because Lys played along properly, but as soon as Swiatek got the push, there was little to get - the "heavy spin" of the woman from Poland on the forehand side was too dominant, and yet played with a good pull and sufficient security. In addition, she usually put Lys under pressure directly with the return - often played through the middle - in order to then dominate the rally.
The scene when Lys managed the game of honor in set 1 was beautiful: she beamed and also got an encouraging nod from her box. In any case, Lys had tried not to let Swiatek's dominance get her down, and she kept firing her fist.
This was also the case when it was again 0:5 in the second round, when she first fended off a match point and then took the serve from Swiatek - to great cheering from the Stuttgart crowd. She had another cue ball after that, but Swiatek pulled a wonderful backhand down the line. She converted match point number 2 with a wonderful half-volley stop.
At the end of the day there is another smooth victory for Swiatek, who continues her frightening form : Swiatek had already lost only one game in two matches in their encounters at the Billie Jean King Cup last weekend.
Nevertheless, Lys can proudly look back on her first Porsche Tennis Grand Prix: After her successful qualification, she only won her first WTA match on Tuesday in more than three hours.
Pliskova wins Czech duel against Kvitova
Previously, 2018 Stuttgart winner Karolina Pliskova had reached the second round in a rather unusual opening match against 2019 winner Petra Kvitova.
Pliskova vs. Kvitova in Round 1? It really was the case, on the one hand because the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix has an exceptionally good field. But above all because Kvitova was not at the height of her work recently, she is currently only 28th in the world after rather moderate results. Pliskova, meanwhile, missed the start of the season due to injury.
The match was initially flawed, both of course play the classic Czech school, according to the motto "Only a flat ball is a good ball". However, many balls were not good at the beginning, but over; in set 3 both found the best game. Pliskova caught up a break, the decisive phase then in the tie-break at 5: 5: Pliskova served an ace through the middle, Kvitova then put a feasible forehand out – game, set and match.
Pliskova was relieved, "my heart is still beating so fast from the match ball," she explained. And also how happy she is about the victory anyway, because Stuttgart is a special tournament. But also because they urgently need matches.
Next up is Liudmila Samsonova, who dealt 6-0, 6-0 to qualifier Chloe Paquet in Round 1.