Iga Swiatek advances in Madrid but questions remain over form

Iga Swiatek advanced to the third round of the 2026 Madrid Open with a straight-sets victory over Daria Snigur, winning 6-1, 6-2.

Despite the comfortable scoreline, Swiatek didn’t have it all her own way. She found herself down 0-2 early in the second set as Snigur threatened to make things interesting.

Swiatek eventually settled into her rhythm and closed out the match without too much trouble. Even so, her performance left some questions lingering…

Colin Fleming noted the information Swiatek received from her team

During Sky Sports’ post-match coverage, former doubles player Colin Fleming gave his thoughts on Swiatek’s win.

“It’s fair to say Iga Swiatek [was] not tested today,” he said.

“It’s hard to know where she is really at.

“Intriguing for me is that there felt like there was a lot of info coming from her team.

“Francisco Roig and her psychologist, so things we will keep an eye on throughout the tournament, but tougher tests lie ahead, that’s for sure.”

Swiatek brought in Francisco Roig ahead of the clay season. So far, she’s one and one under his guidance at the Stuttgart Open.

The Spaniard has only recently joined up with the six-time Grand Slam winner and is clearly pushing to get as much information across as he can in a short time frame.

Fleming also pointed out areas where Swiatek performed well during her win over Snigur.

She placed an ace on break point that stands out. Her percentage was good too. Although it wasn’t a major improvement overall, some other parts of her game were more unpredictable than usual.

Iga Swiatek’s Madrid Open challenge continues against Alycia Parks or Ann Li

Following her win over Snigur, Swiatek has set up a third-round match against either Alycia Parks or Ann Li.

While the odds will be in her favour, her recent results against American opponents haven’t been convincing. Across the past 12 months, Swiatek holds a 5-6 record when facing players from the United States.

She’ll be aiming to even that up when she returns to court for her next match. The third-round fixture is scheduled for Saturday, April 25.

Read more: