Iga Swiatek arrived at Wimbledon with zero expectations, but the 20-year-old Pole served notice that she is a genuine contender after dismantling Irina-Camelia Begu in less than an hour to reach the fourth round.
Swiatek, last year’s surprise French Open champion, had made just one previous appearance on the grass at the All England Club, a first-round defeat in 2019.
⏱ 55 minutes later… @iga_swiatek races into the second week of #Wimbledon, defeating Irina-Camelia Begu 6-1, 6-0 pic.twitter.com/waTzzBa0ot — Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 2, 2021
Only last month Swiatek admitted that she “did not expect anything good from the season on the grass”, a surface she claims does not suit her game.
But the Warsaw-born youngster looked to the manor born in the sunshine on Court 12 as she demolished Romanian world number 79 Begu 6-1 6-0.
And in a field in which six of the top 10 women’s seeds have already departed, Swiatek has every chance of going even deeper into the second week.
Certainly Swiatek feels she is growing into the Championships.
“I feel like I’m playing better and better every match, and I’m actually getting more confidence because I have been on a grass court for some time now. I’m practicing a lot during my free days,” she said.
“I just feel the surface much, much better than at the beginning of the tournament. It’s easier to implement all the tactics that I wasn’t able to implement when I wasn’t feeling comfortable.
“It’s just easier to lead for me and to be aggressive on court and stay focused all the time.”
