Liudmila Samsonova takes a dig at Aryna Sabalenka and calls Iga Swiatek the ‘real World No. 1’ as she hails the Pole as the best player on the Tour

Iga Swiatek is considered the best female tennis player in the world, according to Russian player Liudmila Samsonova. 

Liudmila Samsonova takes a dig at Aryna Sabalenka and calls Iga Swiatek the ‘real World No. 1’ as she hails the Pole as the best player on the Tour

(L-R)Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Liudmila Samsonova. (credits: Tennis365, CGTN)

Russian tennis player Liudmila Samsonova was seen in a recent interview session ahead of her WTA Elite Trophy campaign in Zhuhai this week. Before she faced her group stage matches against the likes of Veronika Kudermetova and Zhu Lin, the tennis professional was asked a couple of questions by the interviewer about her take on the best female tennis player currently. 

Interestingly, without any second thought, Samsonova talked about Iga Swiatek being the real No. 1 player in the world at the moment, according to her. Iga faced Liudmila at the final of the China Open a few weeks ago, where she beat the Russian in straight sets, lifting her fifth title of the year.

Iga, 100%. I'm feeling she's the real No. 1.
Samsonova said in the interview
YouTube video

She further added:

FS Video
We were speaking in the final of Beijing. She came to me and she was really nice during the ceremony. It was like, 'I know sometimes it's tough.' When I started to know her better... I felt something special.

Despite losing to Swiatek in the final, Samsonova revealed how much she still respects her, saying:

Yes, a lot.

Will Iga Swiatek be able to reclaim her No.1 spot?

Despite losing her World No. 1 spot to Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek didn’t have a bad year by any means. She has a win-loss record of 63-11 with five titles in her bag. She was able to win just one Grand Slam title at the Roland Garros, and after her disastrous fourth-round loss against Jelena Ostapenko, she dropped down the rankings.

Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek celebrates after winning a match. (credits: Olympics.com)

With that being said, now that Iga has revealed she wants to get back to her basics and feels even lighter with no pressure on her shoulders to defend the No. 1 spot anymore, Switake is expected to turn even more fierce in the upcoming tournaments.

Nevertheless, it’s safe to say that it won’t be long until Swiatek pushes Sabalenka away from the top-seed position and ends the year yet again as the No. 1 female tennis player.

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