World No.1 Iga Swiatek fired an Australian Open warning to her rivals with a crushing 6-0, 6-1 win over Spanish qualifier Cristina Bucsa in 55 minutes on Friday. The French and US Open champion will now face a showdown with Wimbledon title-holder Elena Rybakina for a place in the quarter-finals.
Double bagel missed
Swiatek sprinted to victory and only missed out on a “double bagel”—6-0, 6-0—when Bucsa, ranked 100, finally held her serve at 5-0 in the second set. The title favourite from Poland had said after a tough first-round examination that she needed to find some extra “intensity.” She has certainly done it, cruising into the Last 16 with the loss of only six games in her second- and third-round matches.
Also read: I need to have more intensity: Iga Swiatek
Swiatek, 21, is on course to win the Australian Open for the first time and with it the third leg of a career Grand Slam of all four majors. “I knew she can be solid so I didn’t really want to let her come back” said Swiatek, who made her Australian Open debut in 2019.
“I’m glad that I was really disciplined and just focusing on my tactics. And yeah, I felt like I’m moving into flow. So that was nice,” added Swiatek, a year after recording her best result at Melbourne Park, losing to Danielle Collins in the semi-finals.
USA’s Pegula, Gauff win
American title favourites Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff had convincing third-round wins. The third-seeded Pegula needed 65 minutes for a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Marta Kostyuk. Seventh-seeded Gauff beat Bernarda Pera 6-3, 6-2 to reach the Last 16.
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