Poland's Iga Swiatek Wins Indian Wells final

Iga Swiatek of Poland defeated Maria Sakkari of Greece 6-4 6-1 in a windy Indian Wells final, moving up to number two in the world rankings.

A windy day in the California desert made life difficult for both players. The gusts led to an unequal match featuring nine service breaks.

Swiatek, 20, took six of those breaks, including two in a one-sided second set, to win his second WTA 1000 title in a row with a booming forehand winner.

Swiatek has won five titles in his career, the most recent being the 2020 French Open champion.

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Swiatek, who won the WTA 1000 event in Doha in February, said, “It’s very crazy because I wasn’t expecting to be in that place (final), especially after playing so well in the last tournament; I didn’t know I could play so well for that long.” “Because of the weather, it was a different contest.”

“You always want to see the best possible final, but in these conditions, as I mentioned, it was quite difficult to play tactically as I wanted, so in the end, I was just concentrated on playing in.”

After losing her first three matches with the Greek, Swiatek has won the following two, extending her WTA match-win run to 11.

Sakkari qualified for the final by defeating defending champion Paula Badosa. Still, the windy circumstances and a concentrated Swiatek were too much for her.

Swiatek will wake up on Monday as the new world number two, and while she admits it’s odd, she’s already setting her sights on Ash Barty and the top spot.

“To be honest, it’s too bizarre to convey right now,” Swiatek added. “However, I am certain that I want to get higher because I believe that attaining number one is getting closer and closer.”

“Without a doubt, Ash is one of the players I’m interested in studying.”

Despite the loss, Sakkari will be ranked third on Monday, equaling Stefanos Tsitsipas for the highest position by a Greek player.

The final got off to a shaky start with four straight service breaks. Still, Swiatek was the first to adjust to the difficult conditions, holding to go 3-2 up and breaking Sakkari to grab a one-set lead.

Sakkari was never able to relax into the competition. Swiatek maintained serve to begin the second set, but it was all Swiatek as she swept five games in a row.

“It wasn’t my day,” Sakkari stated. “I’m not sure what I can say about how I played.

“There was a lot of wind.” At the beginning of the match, we were having trouble with our serves. But, on the other hand, the wind is never an excuse because the wind affects both of us.”