Top seed Iga Swiatek locks horns with Barbora Krejcikova in the finals of the 2023 Dubai Tennis Championships on Saturday.
Iga Swiatek
The world No.1 had a stellar season in 2022 and has continued her rich vein of form this season as well. She was a part of team Poland in the inaugural United Cup. Swiatek played some fantastic tennis throughout the tournament. Her only loss came against Jessica Pegula who comprehensively defeated the Polish star in straight sets. After the United Cup, Swiatek plied her trade in the Australian Open. She made it to the fourth round with one-sided wins against Jule Niemeier, Camila Osorio, and Cristina Bucsa. In the fourth round, eventual finalist Elena Rybakina managed to outpower Swiatek in straight sets.
After the blip, Swiatek got back to where she belonged in the Qatar Open. She defeated Danielle Collins and Veronika Kudermetova en route to the finals. The 21-year-old once again faced Jessica Pegula. This time, Swiatek played a near-perfect game to register a thumping 6-3, 6-0 win to lift her 12th WTA title.
After receiving a first-round bye, Swiatek blew away Leylah Fernandez in the round of 32. The match ended 6-1, 6-1 in favor of the Warsaw-born athlete. The 3-time Grand Slam champion produced another scintillating performance in the round of 16 as she made light work of 14th seed Liudmila Samsonova. Swiatek won the lopsided encounter 6-1, 6-0. She had a win percentage of 74 on the first serve. Karolina Pliskova was set to face Swiatek in the quarterfinals. However, we were deprived of a clash between the current No. 1 and former No. 1 as Pliskova pulled out citing viral illness. Swiatek went on to face 5th seed Coco Gauff in the semis. This was another one-sided affair as Swiatek won 6-4, 6-2. She improved her head-to-head scoreline to 6-0 against the American teenager.
Barbora Krejcikova
The 27-year-old has made it to her biggest final after winning the French Open title in 2021. Krejcikova started the season with a second-round exit in the Adelaide International 2. In the Australian Open though, she managed to reach the fourth round with wins against Sara Bejlek, Clara Burel, and Anhelina Kalinina. Krejcikova eventually lost to Jessica Pegula. The Czech star went on to play in the Abu Dhabi Open where she lost to Liudmila Samsonova in the second round.
Krejcikova did not have a memorable campaign in Qatar either. She lost to 8th seed Veronika Kudermetova in the first round. Krejcikova bounced back with a confident 6-4, 6-2 win in the round of 64 against Irina-Camelia Begu. She followed it up with a stunning three-set win against 7th seed Daria Kasatkina in the round of 32. Krejcikova saved 4 match points to win 6-4, 4-6, 7-5.
12th seed Petra Kvitova was Krejcikova’s quarter-final opponent. The two-time Wimbledon champion was no match for a determined Krejcikova, as the latter played some scintillating tennis to win the match 6-3, 6-2. In the semifinals, Krejcikova faced the in-form Jessica Pegula. Krejcikova lost the second set but played great tennis in the first and third sets to secure a 6-1, 5-7, 6-0 win, avenging her fourth-round loss at the Australian Open.
Head-to-Head and Prediction
Iga Swiatek has a 2-1 lead in the head-to-head scoreline against Barbora Krejcikova. It was the Czech veteran who won their most recent encounter in the finals of the 2022 Ostrava Open 5-7, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.
Prediction: Iga Swiatek to win in three sets.
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