‘Comeback Queen’ Iga Swiatek holds nerves to get past Naomi Osaka after being down 5-2 in the deciding set

Iga Swiatek survived the Naomi Osaka scare as she pulled through a tight game.

‘Comeback Queen’ Iga Swiatek holds nerves to get past Naomi Osaka after being down 5-2 in the deciding set

Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka (via IMAGO)

A major upset was brewing at the French as defending champion Iga Swiatek was getting outplayed by 4-time singles Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka. The predictions were all in favor of the Pole, who seemed in great touch-up to the Grand Slam, but Oska could not be counted out either.

The Japanese has been on an improved run all season and headed into Roland Garros a little short on form, especially on clay. Osaka has always struggled on clay and it seemed like an easy game for Swiatek. 

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However, from the get-go, Osaka put up a fight. With strong groundstrokes and accurate serves, she put Swiatek on the back foot and continued to dominate the match. Although the defending champion took the first set by a small margin, Osaka bounced back incredibly in the second set. She hit over 96% of second service points perfectly and banked nearly 30 forehand winners to force a third setter. 

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Maybe she's gonna be a clay court specialist in a while.
said Iga Swiatek in the post-match interview

Similarly, the Japanese continued to steamroll her way against the Pole in the final set, taking early breaks. However, the WTA No.1 found her mojo at the right time and fought her way from down a match point to save the match 7-6, 1-6, 7-5.

Iga Swiatek makes a great escape after saving herself from down a matchpoint

With rain playing spoilsport on day 4 of Roland Garros, only a handful of matches under the closed stadium took place. One of them was the highly-anticipated match between Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek. 

Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek (Via Imago)

Swiatek had an upper hand on clay after winning two back-to-back Masters tournaments before the Slam. However, Naomi Osaka brought her vintage self to the game and went on a rampage to try and beat Swiatek. 

The Pole hailed her title as comeback queen and did not give in an inch, even though she was down for the whole of the second set and a major part of the third. Seizing every chance, the Pole fought back brilliantly to secure a close victory.

Now, the Pole will move ahead in the French Open to take on the winner between Jana Fett and Marie Bouzkova. After a great match, the Pole would be higher on confidence to try to defend her title.

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