Iga Swiatek confirmed why she is world primary and the new favourite to win this 12 months’s WTA Finals in Forth Price with a 6-2 6-3 dismantling of Daria Kasatkina earlier than Caroline Garcia beat Coco Gauff in straight units on Tuesday.
The match felt all however over for Kasatkina when Swiatek saved two break factors and pounded a forehand winner previous the Russian’s outstretched racket for a 3-0 first-set lead.
The 21-year-old Pole cruised from there on, dominating together with her serve, together with one on match level that Kasatkina couldn’t deal with, to enhance her head-to-head document in opposition to Kasatkina to 5-0 this 12 months.
“I feel I began fairly nicely and that gave me quite a lot of confidence,” Swiatek advised Tennis Channel.
“However then again it’s important to be actually cautious and affected person in opposition to Dasha. I wished to play in a very stable means however put strain on my opponent.
“I did that fairly nicely and I am completely happy about it.”
The win continues an outstanding season for Swiatek, who rose to world primary in April and has gained eight titles together with two Grand Slams at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows this 12 months.
WTA Finals debutante Kasatkina has additionally raised her stage this season, making the semi-finals of the French Open and returning to the highest 10 for the primary time since 2019.
The WTA Finals options eight ladies cut up into two teams, with the highest two finishers shifting into the semi-finals of the indoor event performed on purple arduous courts in Texas.
Within the different Tracy Austin group match of the day, France’s Garcia beat American teenager Gauff 6-4 6-3 to get off to a flying begin.
The veteran Frenchwoman, who additionally triumphed over Gauff within the quarter-finals of this 12 months’s U.S. Open, was the higher participant on the match’s greatest factors, breaking an error-prone Gauff 4 instances.
“An important factor right this moment is I stayed actually optimistic, actually targeted on the current second,” Garcia, who faces Swiatek on Thursday, advised Tennis Channel.
“We at all times know the way necessary the start of the match is and I had a possibility to win the primary recreation however received damaged, and I stated like, that is not good. However I stayed optimistic and was in a position to keep calm.”
American Jessica Pegula faces Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur and Aryna Sabalenka battles Maria Sakkari in group stage motion on Wednesday. The WTA Finals conclude on Nov. 7.