Iga Świątek, the world’s premier female tennis player, secured a thrilling victory in a closely contested match against the 26th-seeded Linda Noskova at Hard Rock Stadium, 6-7(7), 6-4, 6-4. This win keeps her on course for her second triumph at the Miami Open.
Świątek faced Noskova for the fourth time in her career and for the third time this year. None of the previous encounters were as evenly matched, although the closest was their January clash in Melbourne, when the 22-year-old Pole lost in three sets to her opponent, who is three years younger, in the 3rd round of the Grand Slam Australian Open.
While Świątek was not at her best, the effort was enough to improve her season record to 22-2. The Pole will have just under 24 hours of rest, after which she will face 14th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the round of 16.
“Sometimes we have matches like that, and we need to figure out how to close them anyway,” Świątek told reporters. “For sure, it wasn't easy.”
“There were just many ups and downs. I’m happy that after the first set I had a better idea on what to do, and I just tried to do that in important moments.”
The Polish superathlete is fighting for her second “Sunshine Double,” which refers to consecutive triumphs in the prestigious tournaments of Indian Wells, where she was the best a week ago, and Miami. If she wins the tournament, she will match the achievement of Germany’s Steffi Graf from 1994 and 1996.
The Pole joined the elite Sunshine Double Club, the youngest in history, in 2022.
While Świątek was not at her best, the effort was enough to improve her season record to 22-2. The Pole will have just under 24 hours of rest, after which she will face 14th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the round of 16.
“Sometimes we have matches like that, and we need to figure out how to close them anyway,” Świątek told reporters. “For sure, it wasn't easy.”
“There were just many ups and downs. I’m happy that after the first set I had a better idea on what to do, and I just tried to do that in important moments.”
Sunshine DoubleFrom Melbourne to Indian Wells to Miami...@iga_swiatek wins a thrilling trilogy vs. Noskova!#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/dYCNodYrWN
— wta (@WTA) March 25, 2024
The Polish superathlete is fighting for her second “Sunshine Double,” which refers to consecutive triumphs in the prestigious tournaments of Indian Wells, where she was the best a week ago, and Miami. If she wins the tournament, she will match the achievement of Germany’s Steffi Graf from 1994 and 1996.
The Pole joined the elite Sunshine Double Club, the youngest in history, in 2022.
Source: PAP, Reuters
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