World No. 1 Iga Swiatek is one step closer to completing a three-peat at the French Open after a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Coco Gauff during Thursday's semifinal round. Swiatek is now 11-1 in their all-time series.
Swiatek has won 18 consecutive clay matches, as well as 20 straight at the French Open, with her last loss being in the 2021 quarterfinals.
"I think my persistency and the way I stuck to my tactics," Swiatek said during her broadcast courtside interview. "...In the end it wasn't easy to finish. I'm happy I served well in the last game. I can gain some more confident because of that."
Swiatek was able to break Gauff twice in the first set, but the American star showed mental maturity and stayed focused to make it more competitive. Gauff, who has reached a career-high World No. 2 ranking, was aggressive during the match and used her speed as an advantage. However, too many unforced errors and some struggles with her forehand proved costly for her.
Gauff was able to find a 3-1 lead in the second set despite an emotional moment after a disagreement with the chair umpire over a call. But just when she was picking up momentum, Swiatek reminded the Roland Garros crowd why she is the World No. 1 and climbed her way back up to get the job done in straight sets.
Gauff did not go down without a fight, as Swiatek had the advantage when she was up 5-3 but the 20-year-old managed to hold serve and force Swiatek to serve out the match.
"I honestly try to forget about the score and just continued playing the game that I was playing that got me here," Swiatek said. "Yeah I was a break up, but I didn't feel the match was over because Coco was fighting till the end.'
Swiatek will take on the winner of the match between No. 12 seed Jasmine Paolini. Both are making their Grand Slam semifinal debut.
