Paris, June 3 (IANS) World No. 5 from Poland Iga Swiatek reached her fourth consecutive Roland Garros semifinal and extended her winning streak in Paris to 26 matches after dispatching Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina 6-1, 7-5 in a compelling quarterfinal clash.

With the victory, Swiatek became only the fifth player in the Open Era — male or female — to notch 25 or more consecutive singles wins at the French Open, joining the elite company of Rafael Nadal, Chris Evert, Bjorn Borg, and Monica Seles.

“It looks straightforward, but it wasn’t,” Swiatek admitted after the match. “I had to fight for every point, especially in the second set when she broke me. I’m proud I kept my intensity till the end.”

That intensity was key. While the first set saw Swiatek pull away despite three early break points for Svitolina, the second was a different battle altogether. The Ukrainian, who entered the match as the clay-court match-win leader this season with 16 victories and deep runs in Rouen, Madrid, and Rome, pushed Swiatek to the brink. She led 3-1 and then stood two points from taking the second set while up 5-4.

But as champions do, Swiatek found another gear. She survived that game, then pounced on a second serve in the next with a blistering crosscourt forehand return to break for 6-5. Moments later, with the match on her racquet, she fired two aces in a row — her second and third of the match — to close out the contest in 1 hour and 41 minutes.

Though she came into Roland Garros without a clay title for the first time since 2020, Swiatek is now two wins away from a fifth French Open crown — and perhaps her most meaningful yet. Next, she faces a familiar and formidable opponent in Aryna Sabalenka, the current World No. 1.

Since April 2022, these two have monopolized the top ranking, with Swiatek spending 125 weeks at the summit and Sabalenka now in her 41st week.

Their rivalry, already 12 matches deep, tilts in Swiatek’s favor at 8-4 overall and 5-1 on clay. Yet it was Sabalenka who claimed victory in their most recent meeting — a dominant 6-3, 6-3 win on the Cincinnati hard courts last year. Thursday’s semifinal will mark their first-ever meeting at Roland Garros, with the clay-court narrative now front and center.

“For sure our rivalry is pushing both of us,” Swiatek said. “But it’s not just about tennis. It’s also about how we work, how professional we are — the whole approach.”

–IANS

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