French Open runner-up now wants a slam of her own
Highlights
By Ed Emeanua
After beating back the formidable challenge of Karolina Muchova on Saturday, Iga Swiatek secured her position as the preeminent female tennis player on clay on earth, winning her third finals over four years at Roland Garros.
Swiatek becomes the first female tennis star after Justine Henin’s 2007 feat to defend her crown on the clay court of Paris also joining Naomi Osaka on four grand slam titles wins, and only Venus Williams with seven slams, remains the only still playing tennis star to hold more.
The 22-year-old Polish star has seen her professional fortitude mature after overpowering her opponent to capture her third French tennis Open championship.
Muchova missed upsetting Swiatek by just a few sets, in what is her initiatory Grand Slam title match at this year’s event of the French Open, battling to a 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 loss to the number one ranked female tennis persona on the planet.
Undoubtedly, this would go down as the stiffest challenge that Swiatek has encountered in her grand slam finals rollouts, with the Czech titlist outsider roaring back from a set and 3-0 down to force a few moments of reckoning.
Twice, Muchova was a break ahead but Swiatek refused to go down, finally triumphing 6-2, 5-7, and 6-4 in two hours and 46 minutes of crunching tennis on the clay.
“I’m feeling all these different emotions right now,” Swiatek said moments after her triumph.
“It’s pretty surreal, everything. But the match was really intense, a lot of ups and downs. Stressful moments and coming back. So I’m pretty happy that at the end I could be solid in those few last games and finish it.
“But Karolina really played well. It was a big challenge. I’m happy and really proud of myself that I did it.
“This one, for sure, it was a little bit tougher in terms of injuries and the pressure, and also coming back to this tournament as a defending champion.
“I’m happy that I finished the whole clay court swing so well and that I kind of survived. I guess I’m never going to doubt my strength again.”
The champion’s Czech opponent, with a rock-solid 5-0 win-loss record over the top-3 foes coming into the tournament, had a lot of positives to take back home from Paris.
“Well, I think this is pretty soon after the match,” Karolina Muchova said.
“I still didn’t kind of like soak it up. But yeah, it’s very, it’s a big motivation, now that I know that, you know, Iga Swiatek is World No. 1 and I was so close.
“I think now that I can do it. Obviously I know it’s not like, you know, just like that (snapping fingers). It’s a lot of work and effort to do, but I’m willing to take that.
“Yeah, I’ll try my best in other two slams this year and next year, and I hope I will again get a chance to play for the title again (smiling).”
