Iga Swiatek produced one of her “best performances” to win a second Porsche Tennis Grand Prix title and afterwards she admitted that she is starting to really love life as the world No 1.
After missing her Miami Open title defence due to injury, Swiatek was not too sure what to expect when she made her return in Stuttgart last week.
The defending champion started with a comfortable win over Qinwen Zheng in the second round before she was pushed to three sets by Karolina Pliskova in the quarter-final. Her semi-final clash against Ons Jabeur lasted only three games before the Tunisian threw in the towel due to injury.
The final pitted the world No 1 against the world No 2 as she faced Aryna Sabalenka. It was expected to be a close contest, especially as Sabalenka has been in brilliant form this year with a 19–2 record heading into the match while she also won the pair’s last encounter at the WTA Finals last year.But it was a dominant display from Swiatek as she broke in game eight of the first set and in game one of the second set.
“Honestly, when I came here I wasn’t expecting to play that well,” the top seed told The Associated Press after the win. “I am pretty happy to be in that place and holding the trophy, it’s a really wonderful time.“I am proud of myself and the team that we were able to get better and better every match. For sure, the final was so intense, I am just happy that I was able to keep the good level.
“It’s one of the best performances I have played, but every tournament is different. Some things you have to take into consideration for sure, you know, coming back from injury and not feeling perfectly in terms of my level at the beginning of the tournament made it even more special that I can pay so well tonight. So, I am happy yeah.”
