Iga Swiatek’s hopes of reclaiming world No 1 ranking take a hit – does she have a problem?
The path to victory at the Qatar Open seemed to be open for world No 2 Iga Swiatek, so the manner of her semi-final defeat against Jelena Ostapenko will leave a lasting mark.
With world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka losing in her first match in Doha and Swiwtek swatting away the challenge Elena Rybakina in the quarter-finals, all eyes were on the Polish star as she appeared to be on course to win a fourth title in Qatar and move closer to the top of the rankings.
Yet that dream was shattered in comprehensive fashion by Ostapenko, as she recorded a one-side 6-3 6-1 victory in just an hour and eight minutes.
Maintaining a high level from first point to last, Ostapenko barely offered up any error as she continued to blast winners past Swiatek with relentless power.
“I feel like this court has a special energy,” said Ostapenko in her on-court interview.
“I was pretty confident that I would beat her because we’ve played a lot of matches and I kind of know how to play against her. I’m really happy with the way I’m handling my emotions this week. I’m just so happy to be in the final.”
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The win continued Ostapenko’s remarkable record of dominance against five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek, as she has now beaten her in all five matches they have played.
While it is clear that Ostapenko is Swiatek’s nightmare opponent when she plays her best tennis, the bigger concern for the Pole must be her inability to hurt her Latvian opponent with a game that is too strong for almost every other player on the WTA Tour.
Swiatek hits through most opponents with her power-hitting, but shifting her game plan when the first approach does not work appears to be a problem for her.
This has been a recurring theme as she has suffered some unexpected over the last year, with seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe suggesting she needs to add layers to her game to go to a level that will be beyond everyone in the women’s game.
“One issue for me is she doesn’t want to play defence at all,” said McEnroe.
“At times, she should pull back when the offence isn’t going as well as it can do on clay. She keeps trying to hit out, which is somewhat surprising for someone who prefers a slower surface.
“I was a little surprised that she is either unwilling or unable to make adjustments on the faster surfaces.
“I don’t know if she had a dip in confidence, but if you saw someone like Iga digging in and defending as well as she attacks, that would be hard opponents to overcome.
“I’m a little surprised she has not made that adjustment, but she is young. Hopefully she can make that adjustment and improve a little at the net.
“I’m not close enough to her to know what she needs to do. We know she’s a great player, but she has spoken about scheduling being an issue.
“I don’t know if she needs to play some events due to sponsors, but maybe she needs to take a step back at some point and appreciate what she has done.
“She should realise she’s had an amazing career and she will get better. She is still young. She is going to be around for many years and she has a lot to be proud about.”
Swiatek will now have to wait for another chance to close the rankings gap on Sabelenka and it is hard to know how she will react to this defeat against Ostapenko, with her 5-0 winning record in this head-to-head one of the more remarkable records in tennis right now.
It may be that Swiatek needs to add some subtle touches to the brutal power that is normally enough to see off her rivals.
Taking your game to the next level when you have already achieved so much is no easy task, but that will be on Swiatek’s mind after this crushing defeat.
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