WTA Dubai: will Swiatek pass the next matriculation exam?
Iga Swiatek is on the way up. An extremely difficult task awaits the Polish woman with Garbine Muguruza at the WTA Tour 1000 tournament in Dubai on Wednesday.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Mar 10, 2021, 10:29 am
Iga Swiatek and Garbine Muguruza have at least one thing in common: They both won their first Grand Slam title in Roland Garros, and Muguruza added another at Wimbledon. Swiatek has not yet made it that far. However, you shouldn't bet against it. Because the Polish woman showed with her appearances in 2021 that she can now be expected more and more often. Not just when she won the tournament in Adelaide. The last women's tournament in Australia was not nearly as well-attended as the one in Dubai.
And that's where Iga Swiatek and Garbine Muguruza will meet in the round of 16 on Wednesday. For the first time. And in a tableau that is far better occupied in the lower half than in the upper half. After the departure of Petra Kvitova , Elina Svitolina , Madison Keys, Elena Rybakina and Marketa Vondrousova, only Belinda Bencic is represented by the seeded players. While the winner of the game between Swiatek and Muguruza has to deal with either Aryna Sabalenka or Anett Kontaveit. And then there would be Karolina Pliskova right at the bottom of the tournament tree.
Swiatek with a good record against top 20 opponents
Swiatek has overtaken Muguruza by one place in the WTA world rankings and is eighth in Dubai. The 19-year-old won four of the last five matches against top 20 players like Muguruza. The only defeat was in the round of 16 against Simona Halep. But also in this match Swiatek played outstanding tennis at the beginning, impressed with a lot of variation. And an irresistible urge to network.
Garbine Muguruza, on the other hand, was the closest of all Naomi Osaka's opponents to ending the Japanese's winning streak that began at the WTA premier tournament moved from Cincinnati to New York City. However, the Spaniard left two match points unused in the round of 16 of the Australian Open. In Dubai, Muguruza and Swiatek were able to convince in round two: Neither the Polish nor the Spaniard gave a set against Misaki Doi or Amanda Anisimova.