Jessica Pegula hammered Swiatek 6-2, 6-2
It was a rare defeat for the World No. 1 on the tour
Frances Tiafoe defeated Kacper Zuk 6-3, 6-3 to help USA go 2-0 ahead
By India Today Web Desk: World No. 1 Iga Swiatek was comfortably outclassed in the opening singles match of the United Cup 2023 semi-final tie as Poland suffered a setback against the United States. Swiatek was beaten in straight sets by Jessica Pegula, ranked No. 3 on the WTA charts.
USA took a 2-0 lead on Day 1 of the semi-final after Frances Tiafoe defeated Kacper Zuk 6-3, 6-3 in Sydney on Friday, January 6. World No.1 Swiatek, who is considered one of the favourites to win the Australian Open title later this month, was reduced to tears as she was beaten in just 71 minutes 2-6, 2-6. Swiatek had beaten Pegula in all their 4 meetings in 2022 and was expected to give Poland the early lead in the semi-final.
However, the first rubber of the first semi-final proved to be a mismatch. The American started by breaking Swiatek’s serve early and played with a lot of aggression, stepping into the baseline and negating the power of Swiatek’s serves.
The World No. 1 star took a lengthy toilet break at the end of the first set and hoped to change things around but she was comfortably outclassed in the second set as well.
