Iga Swiatek’s brutal assessment of her disappointing defeat to Coco Gauff in Madrid semifinal
Iga Swiatek's trophy drought continues as Coco Gauff denied her a chance to defend the Madrid Open by dismantling her in 64 minutes.
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Coco Gauff, Iga Swiatek (Image via X/Cancha Central, #MMOpen)
Nothing seems to be working for Iga Swiatek these days. When everyone thought she would be ending her trophy drought in the Madrid Open, Swiatek once again was defeated in a semifinal.
Before her upset to World No.4 Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-1, the tennis world saw something that is rare on the WTA Tour. Swiatek was handed a bagel by 2025 Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the quarterfinals. In the semifinal too, Swiatek did not at all play to her full potential and later explained what perhaps was the reason behind her subpar performance.
I feel that I couldn’t move well. Today, I couldn’t even put a Plan B into play. Nothing worked for me today. Everything collapsed. My feeling is that I wasn’t positioning my feet correctly on the court before hitting the shots.
Iga Swiatek said at the press conference
Gauff is the player Swiatek had defeated the most in her career as, at one point, the World No.2 used to lead 11-1 in the head-to-head matchups. But the Madrid Open semifinal marked her first win over the five-time Grand Slam champion on clay in six matches.
The 21-year-old also registered her third consecutive win over Swiatek to improve her head-to-head record to 4-11. It was also Gauff’s second consecutive victory against the Pole this season following the United Cup final match.
The defeat was Swiatek’s second on the clay swing this year as before arriving in Madrid, eventual winner Jelena Ostapenko improved her head-to-head record over the Pole to 6-0 after beating her in the Stuttgart Open quarterfinal. Last year, after losing the Stuttgart Open semifinal to eventual winner Elena Rybakina, Swiatek went on to take home the Madrid Open, the Italian Open, and her fourth French Open title.
Since lifting her third consecutive Roland Garros title, Swiatek has not only failed to win a trophy but was also unsuccessful in reaching the final. This year, Swiatek so far has advanced to four semifinals, including at the Australian Open where Keys ended her campaign.
Iga Swiatek is on the verge of losing her No.2 ranking to Coco Gauff
Gauff has reached the Madrid Open final for the first time in her career. She will also be playing her first final of the season as prior to Madrid, she failed to win more than two matches in the five tournaments she played since losing the Australian Open quarterfinal to Paula Badosa.
Gauff, who last won a title at the 2024 WTA Finals, has 6603 points in the live rankings table. If she beats Aryna Sabalenka in the summit clash, she will topple Iga Swiatek to start the next week as the World No.2. But Gauff said she doesn’t pay heed to the rankings much.
I’ll be honest, it’s not important to me. The only number that would mean a lot to me is number one at the moment. But yes, anything else is just a number. But obviously, it’s a recognition for the work I’m putting in and the consistency I’m showing, but it’s not something I think about or a goal to achieve.
Coco Gauff said at the press conference
Win or no win in the final, Sabalenka won’t be losing her No.1 ranking as she sits on the top with 10768 points in the live rankings. Sabalenka, so far in the season, has reached six finals and is bidding to win her third title following the Brisbane International and the Miami Open.
Gauff leads 5-4 in the head-to-head record against the three-time Grand Slam champion. Before setting up a blockbuster showdown against the 2023 US Open champion, the two-time Madrid Open champion went past Elina Svitolina 6-3, 7-5.
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