Iga Swiatek has maintained her flawless record at the Adelaide International, dropping just three games against Leylah Fernandez on Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals.
No.5 seed Swiatek overwhelmed last year’s US Open finalist 6-1 6-2 in just one hour and 13 minutes, finishing the match with 20 winners to just 10 unforced errors.
The defending champion is now a perfect 7-0 lifetime at Memorial Drive Tennis Centre, with an even more impressive 14-0 win-loss record in sets.
Swiatek will next meet former world No.1 Victoria Azarenka, who overcame Australian wildcard Priscilla Hon 6-3 7-5 in the match that followed on Centre Court.
Is @vika7 sorry for defeating an Aussie on home soil?
Not so much 😂 #AdelaideTennis 🔜 #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/5yjCQlL7ii
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 6, 2022
“I felt really confident, for sure, and I’m pretty happy that I could finish it really quickly and I didn’t let go of focus. So that was great,” Swiatek said after beating the 19-year-old Canadian.
“I was pretty stressed, because that was like the first match where I thought I’m playing against a younger girl, which is pretty new for me (laughter). Because I was always the younger one.
“She’s pretty talented, and of course she is a Grand Slam finalist, so I knew it’s gonna be tricky.”
Swiatek is the second-highest ranked player left in the draw, following the exits of Aryna Sabalenka, Maria Sakkari and Paula Badosa, the second, third and fourth seeds respectively.
The only player ranked higher is world No.1 Ash Barty, who on Wednesday night moved into the last eight and remains on track to meet Swiatek in a blockbuster semifinal.
Barty will next face Sofia Kenin in a rematch of the pair’s tense Australian Open 2020 semifinal, which Kenin went on to win before capturing her first major title two days later.
A resurgent Kenin on Thursday night trailed 6-3 5-3 and saved three match points to eventually beat Ajla Tomljanovic 3-6 7-6(5) 6-3.
“Obviously I’m super happy. I’m proud of myself. It was a really tough match; she’s such a good player,” said Kenin, who finished the match with 50 winners – 29 of which came in the second set.
“So yeah, I’m just super happy with the way I played and the way I fought.”
Swiatek v Azarenka set for quarters
Swiatek must first contend with Azarenka, the two-time Australian Open champion who has looked brilliant so far in Adelaide.
Azarenka was responsible for dismissing Badosa in the first round, and she won her second consecutive match in straight sets against Hon on Thursday.
She was relentlessly intense from the baseline, keeping pressure on the Australian and forcing her to go for too much.
In an admirable display by the world No.263, Hon recovered from 6-3 2-0 down, surviving three break points to level scores at 4-4.
But her resistance crumbled in the final game of the match, in which she was broken to 15 to hand Azarenka victory in just under 90 minutes.
“I felt like I played well, but there were some occasions where I kind of got myself a little bit into trouble with hesitation,” said Azarenka, who finished with a tidy tally of 15 unforced errors to Hon’s 31.
“But I have to give it to Priscilla; she really defended well and kind of got me into that mode of not committing fully.
“I’m glad that I was able to finish strong, and some of those moments like this are important also in the beginning of the season, when you (have) some tight moments to overcome.
“So I’m actually grateful for that.”
Azarenka has now won seven of her past eight matches, having reached the Indian Wells final in her last tournament of 2021.
She beat Swiatek in their only prior meeting in the third round of the 2020 US Open – Azarenka went on to make that year’s final in New York – but was wary of the ever-improving Pole.
“I think she feels pretty comfortable here, being defending champion,” Azarenka said.
“We had before a really interesting match, and she has progressed a lot since then, so I’m looking forward to that battle.
“She’s definitely one of the upcoming, rising, super-talented players, so it’s gonna be a tough challenge, but I’m always up for it.”