Reigning French Open Champion Iga Swiatek Survives a Scare at Gippsland Trophy 2021

Polish teenager Iga Swiatek survived a scare in the 2nd round of the Gippsland Trophy in Melbourne, Australia. Slovenia’s Kaja Juvan put on a show against the French Open 2020 champion, but the latter showcased her resiliency and held on for the win. 

The Gippsland Trophy’s 2nd round saw 2 talented youngsters clash, and it was Swiatek who emerged victorious in the end. Juvan defeated China’s Yafan Wang to progress to the second round, while a 6th-seeded Swiatek received a bye in the 1st round. 

Swiatek lost the first set to Juvan, which put the match in jeopardy. There was a possibility of a straight-set defeat for Swiatek as the World No. 104 played some sensational tennis. However, Swiatek bounced back in the second set and took over the proceedings from there. 

Iga Swiatek gets the better of Kaja Juvan in their first professional meeting

It was an interesting match indeed, and Iga Swiatek rectified the flaws that she made in the first set of the match. Though Juvan was not very accurate with her first serve, she won 100% of her points in the first set through the first serve, compared to Swiatek’s 61.5%. 

Getting past the nervy first set proved enough for Swiatek. She then began to find her natural rhythm in the game, and her returns were spectacular thereon. She took control of her opponent’s service games and converted 5-8 breakpoints to gain momentum. 

The match looked in Juvan’s favor in the first set, but it completely shifted when Swiatek began returning the ball more cleanly, with added confidence.

Though her service returns were largely outplayed, Swiatek got the better out of rallies and won 55.6% of her second return points. 

Juvan won the first set 6-2, and the same scoreline was replicated in the second set, but in Swiatek’s favor. The Polish teenager did not lose grip from there and the 3rd set was just a cakewalk as she just allowed her opponent to win one service game. 

Swiatek won 77/145 points in the match, out of which 64.2% came through her service games. Such is the importance of holding a solid serve, and Iga Swiatek would be relieved with the 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory. 

Swiatek has progressed to the 3rd round at the Gippsland Trophy where she’ll face Ekaterina Alexandrova next. These two athletes have never played each other before, hence, it will be interesting to see who makes it to the quarterfinals. 

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