We have just been excited about the meeting between Iga Świątek and Barbora Krejcikova, and it is already time for another clash with the participation of the Polish representative. After rebirth in a duel with the Czech woman, where our tennis player made up for the loss from 4:6 and 0:3 with a double breakit’s time to compete with Coco Gauff. The American started the competition in Riyadh with a very confident victory 6:3, 6:2 in the match against her compatriot – Jessica Pegula. Thanks to a better set balance than the Raszyn player, she is leading in the orange group table after the first round of the WTA Finals.
This situation may change on Tuesday. All because both of them will fight in a direct clash and only one of them will maintain the undefeated status in the competition in Saudi Arabia. Theoretically Gauff showed her better side in the premiere match. Świątek had trouble finding the right rhythm for a long time and it was only from the middle of the second set of the match against Krejcikova that she started to get into better shape. However, this could have been due to the fact that it was Iga’s first appearance in two months and she lacked match preparation. She was immediately thrown into the deep end, but at the last moment she escaped from great difficulties.
Theoretically, it should be getting better with each match played. In addition, such a victory will give the 23-year-old a lot of self-confidence. The fact that she is the Pole’s favorite rival may also play a big role in the fight against the champion of last year’s US Open. Favorite because She doesn’t have such a good record against any opponent. So far it is 11-1 in favor of Iga. From Coco’s perspective, these matches were often nightmares and clearly lost sets.
Both met, among others: during last year’s WTA Finals in Cancun. It was also the second round of the group stage. Then Świątek completely dominated Gauff in the first set. The American looked completely helpless and absent, making a lot of mistakes. And Świątek played her part, thanks to which she triumphed in the premiere 6-0. The second game turned out to be much more even, and the weather conditions also came into play. Despite this, the Raszyn player finished the match in two sets. What will it be like this time? An additional flavor is added by the fact that Iga must win to maintain her mathematical chances of being the leader of the WTA ranking at the end of the season. The match starts no earlier than 16:00 Polish time. Coverage in Interia Sport will be available HERE.
Jessica Pegula – Barbora Krejcikova match, i.e. a fight not without significance for Iga Świątek
Before Iga Świątek and Coco Gauff appear on the court, not before At 1:30 p.m. Polish time, the competition between Jessica Pegula and Barbora Krejcikova will start. Both will fight for their premiere triumph and to maintain a real chance of getting out of the group. Their meeting will have a significant impact on what may happen with the orange group table after the Polish-American clash. This will be discussed at the end of the article in potential scenarios for the second series of games.
Coming back to Pegula and Krejcikova – they both have their problems. Jessica clearly shows that she has not yet found the form she showed during the August-September competitions in North America. In the first match against Gauff, we saw a rather weaker version of the 30-year-old, the one from the tournaments played in China. In turn, Barbora performed well in the initial phase of the match against Świątek, but later she was unable to keep up with Iga. The question is also what’s really going on with her back. The Czech struggled with this injury just before the start of the WTA Finals and had a break from training. The fight between Pegula and Krejcikova is therefore a big unknown. A report from this fight will be available in Interia Sport HERE.
Scenarios for the standings after the second round in the orange group at the WTA Finals
The thing about the second round of the competition is that certain scenarios may arise that will result in us meeting the first semi-finalist of the competition or a tennis player who will fight only for ranking points and another financial bonus in the last group match. Different cases that may arise are presented by the WTA website. Here are the individual sub-points:
- Gauff will advance to the semi-finals if she defeats Świątek in two sets (final position in the table to be determined)
- If Gauff and Pegula win their matches, then Coco will advance to the semi-finals as the winner of the group, Świątek and Jessica will fight for second place on Thursday, and Barbora will then lose the chance to advance to the semi-finals
- If Świątek and Krejcikova win their matches, then Iga will advance to the semi-finals as the winner of the group, Gauff and Barbora will fight for second place on Thursday, and Pegula will then lose the chance to advance to the semi-finals
- Pegula loses its chance to advance to the semifinals if it loses in two sets
Any other solution will mean that everything will be decided only in the third round of the group phasewhich will take place on Thursday. Therefore, there will be a very interesting competition during today’s duels. Perhaps in just a few or a dozen or so hours we will be happy with Iga Świątek’s advancement to the semi-finals.
Iga Świątek – Coco Gauff. Match summary. VIDEO /AP/© 2024 Associated Press
Coco Gauff/FATIH AKTAS / ANADOLU / Anadolu via AFP/AFP
Jessica Pegula/FATIH AKTAS / ANADOLU / Anadolu via AFP/AFP
