Barbora Krejcikova wins Dubai title as she again gets the better of Iga Swiatek – ‘It’s a huge achievement’

Shahida Jacobs
Barbora Krejcikova delighted

Barbora Krejcikova notched up her first-ever WTA 1000 title after once again getting the better of Iga Swiatek in a final – this time at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

The last time the two met was in the Ostrava Open final in October last year and on that occasion Krejcikova became only the second player to defeat Swiatek in a final as she won in three sets to lift a fifth career title.

Now she has two wins in two finals against the three-time Grand Slam winner and this time it was more straightforward as she claimed a 6-4, 6-2 win in one hour and 31 minutes.

“It means a lot. It was a great week and I was improving in every game. Today I showed my best tennis,” Krejcikova said during her on-court interview.

“I have to really admire Iga for what she’s done and what she’s doing. I have so much respect for her. To me, she’s a big inspiration. She motivates me every day.”

The 2021 French Open champion broke three times in the opening set, although Swiatek also got two breaks, while two breaks in the second set earned her a maiden WTA 1000 title to go with one Grand Slam, one WTA 500 trophy and three WTA 250 events.

She added: “It’s a huge achievement. I was enjoying all the matches and I love playing on big courts with the great atmosphere. I hope there’s going to be more matches like this for me.”

Krejcikova, who missed several months of the 2022 season due to injury, has now won her last three finals as she also won the Tallinn Open in October last year.

The Czech started the week at No 30 in the WTA Rankings, but she will surge back into the top 20 as she is projected to move up to No 16 – still a long way off her career-best No 2.

Swiatek, who won the Qatar Open last week, remains top of the rankings and has a 4,000-odd point cushion over Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka.

Both Swiatek and Krejcikova will rest next week ahead of the Sunshine Double in the United States with the Indian Wells Open getting underway on March 6 before they head to Florida for the Miami Open from March 21-27.

READ MORE: Iga Swiatek’s 2023 tennis schedule: Where is she competing next and her season so far…