“I have nothing to lose” Elina Svitolina sends a strong warning to Iga Swiatek ahead of their fourth-round tie in Miami

Elina Svitolina and Iga Swiatek have met on the court thrice, with the latter leading 2-1 in their head-to-head record.

“I have nothing to lose” Elina Svitolina sends a strong warning to Iga Swiatek ahead of their fourth-round tie in Miami

Elina Svitolina and Iga Swiatek (via X/Miami Open/BNP Paribas Open)

Elina Svitolina continued with her great form in the Sunshine Double after producing a masterclass performance to oust Karolina Muchova in the third round. The Ukrainian star will now face World No.2 Iga Swiatek in the fourth round. Ahead of their meeting, she sent a strong warning to her opponent.

Svitolina enjoyed a tremendous run of form at the Indian Wells, where she reached the quarterfinals before losing to Mirra Andreeva. She continued with the same momentum in Miami. She annihilated Belinda Bencic 6-1, 6-2 in her opening match at the WTA 1000 tournament in Florida.

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The No.22 seed struggled during her third-round match against Svitolina as her level dropped a bit in the second set. However, she found a way to overcome the 15th seed, Muchova 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, in two hours and three minutes. The victory also extended her head-to-head record against the Czech Republic to 3-0.

She will now face Swiatek, who is seeking her first title since July 2024. The tie is a clash of two heavyweights in the WTA, but the Ukrainian is not heading into it afraid. She revealed during her conversation with Tennis Channel that she has nothing to lose.

We played a couple of times. We know each other’s game. For me I feel like I have nothing to lose and only things to gain. I’ll try to recover because we are playing tomorrow. I’ll just try to be there with my game plan and talk with my coach. She has a big game. She’s a big champion and knows how to win. It will take a lot from me to beat her, but I’m ready for that.

Elina Svitolina said via Tennis Channel

Svitolina has improved in her game this season. The World No.22 reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open earlier this year. This is the fourth time that she’s into the round of 16 of a tournament this season.

Iga Swiatek worried about playing in the night in Miami than her opponent Elina Svitolina

Iga Swiatek has continued from where she stopped at Indian Wells. The Polish star failed to defend her title at the California desert but has bounced back in Florida. She defeated Elise Martens in straight sets in the third round of the Miami Open to book a place against Elina Svitolina in the fourth round. However, she’s more worried about playing in the night than her opponent Svitolina.

Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek (Image via WTA/X)

It will be different due to the time, but you have to adapt, sometimes it’s easier, other times it’s harder. We’ll see, I won’t dwell on it too much, I’ll just do what I always do when playing in the night session, we’ll see if that means my game will be different or not. The conditions will be different, that’s for sure, so that will have to be taken into account.

Iga Swiatek said

Swiatek has failed to reach a tournament final this season, which means going into the fourth round against Svitolina she has more pressure on her shoulders than the Ukrainian. She hopes to play her best tennis despite the conditions and come out with a victory.

Iga Swiatek and Elina to meet for the fourth time in their careers at the Miami Open

Iga Swiatek and Elina Svitolina seem to have the measure of each other, despite only meeting thrice on the court. The reason for that is that each has earned a victory against the other. Nonetheless, Swiatek leads 2-1 in their head-to-head record. The last time they faced each other was at the 2024 Dubai Open, where Swiatek crushed Svitolina 6-1, 6-4.

Elina Svitolina
Elina Svitolina (Image via X)

Svitolina’s only victory against Swiatek came at the 2023 Wimbledon Championship, a match the latter was the favorite to win. However, Svitolina stunned her 7-5, 6(5)-7, 6-2 to reach the semifinals of the Grand Slam tournament.