Iga Swiatek’s chances of winning the 2022 US Open title hampered after top seeds Jessica Pegula and Jelena Ostapenko stand as hurdles

Iga Swiatek’s chances of winning the 2022 US Open title hampered after top seeds Jessica Pegula and Jelena Ostapenko stand as hurdles

Iga Swiatek

World No. 1 Iga Swiatek will have her final chance of the season to win her 3rd major and 1st on a surface other than Clay as she is now a 2-time champion at the French Open. The Pole’s defeat in the third round of the 2022 Wimbledon ended her 37-match unbeaten streak and she has not looked the same since with inconsistent results since then over the few events she has played in.

This will be Iga’s just 4th US Open appearance with the 21-year-old making her debut at the Grand Slam back in 2019. She has improved every year as she reached the 2nd round in 2019, the 3rd round in 2020 and made it to the 4th round in the last year’s edition. However, this year, with brilliant hardcourt results in the first half of the season, all eyes will be on the Pole who is one of the biggest favourites for the final Grand Slam of the season.

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Iga Swiatek has a tricky draw on her way to her maiden US Open title

Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek

Swiatek will start her campaign in New York against Jasmine Paolini and is likely to take on former US Open champ Sloane Stephens in the second round, a tricky test early in the campaign. The 3rd round could see the Pole take on Ekaterina Alexandrova, the 28th seed of the tournament followed by an exciting clash with 16th seed Jelena Ostapenko in the fourth round looking to avenge her defeat to the Latvian who was the last person to defeat Iga before the Pole started her streak of 37 wins which ended in Wimbledon.

The quarter-final clash with 8th seed and local girl Jessica Pegula could be a massive match as Pegula is likely to have the entire stadium behind her and make things difficult for the Pole. In the semis, Iga could expect 4th seeded Paula Badosa, another solid player on hardcourts although her form recently might raise some eyebrows. The finals could see Iga meet 2nd seeded Anett Kontaveit who has been brilliant on hardcourts but has failed to perform in Grand Slams and has a great chance to make the best use of her seed to have a big run.

Iga Swiatek’s path to the US Open title based on seeding

  • R1: Jasmine Paolini
  • R2: Sloane Stephens
  • R3: Ekaterina Alexandrova
  • R4: Jelena Ostapenko
  • QF: Jessica Pegula
  • SF: Paula Badosa
  • F: Anett Kontaveit

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