Iga Swiatek has made a strong start to her campaign at the Qatar Open, easing past Janice Tjen 6-0, 6-3 in her opening match.
Tjen had just pulled off a similar surprise against Beatriz Haddad Maia, dominating 6-0, 6-1 after Sorana Cirstea withdrew from their scheduled first-round clash.
But the Indonesian had no answer for Swiatek’s consistency and shot-making, with the match wrapping up in just over an hour.
The Polish star holds an impressive record at this event and is looking to add a fourth Doha title to her collection this week.
It was a convincing way to begin that pursuit, with Swiatek later reflecting on how she set the tone early against Tjen.
Iga Swiatek stays focused after opening set sweep in Qatar
After the match, Swiatek was asked by reporters about her remarkable record of 36 WTA 1000 sets won by a 6-0 scoreline, more than any other player. The question was whether she ever felt compelled to ease off and give away a game.
Swiatek responded: “I think when I was younger, I felt that way. But later on, you just want to win it.
“It’s sport so it doesn’t make sense to stop or play at 80%. I’m here to perform my best.
“I also always felt it wouldn’t be respectful towards the opponent to give them something because we’re here to play our best.”
With her latest win, Swiatek advances to the next round where she’ll face either Sorana Cirstea or Donna Vekic.
Swiatek eyes fourth Qatar Open title with clear path ahead
Swiatek’s consistency in handing out 6-0 sets has been remarkable, and she’ll look to continue that trend against Daria Kasatkina, who has already claimed two of her own in this tournament.
Swiatek goes into the match as a clear favourite, not just for this round but also to take home the title.
The Pole hasn’t played since her Australian Open quarterfinal loss to Elena Rybakina, who is also competing in Doha this week.
Rybakina faces a tough challenge against Qinwen Zheng, who has returned strongly from injury. Zheng has already taken down Sofia Kenin and Alycia Parks since returning to the tour.
This quarter of the draw also features a meeting between Mirra Andreeva and Victoria Mboko, while Swiatek’s section no longer includes big names like Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova or Jasmine Paolini—all three have already been knocked out.
However, Jelena Ostapenko is still in contention. The Latvian defeated Swiatek in last year’s semifinal before falling to Anisimova in the final.
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