On Saturday, the Polish lost the third round of the tennis classic in the third round to the experienced Frenchwoman Alice Cornet with 4:6,2:6 and suffered the first defeat after 37 wins in a row. Swiatek had won the French Open and the previous five tournaments. From the top ten in the world rankings, only Tunisian Ons Jabeur (2) and Paula Badosa (4) from Spain are still there.
21-year-old Swiatek made more than 30 unforced errors in the game, being repeatedly attacked by Cornet on her second serve. The 32-year-old, who is playing her 62nd Grand Slam tournament en suite, has never made it past the round of 16 at Wimbledon, but had already beaten American superstar Serena Williams at the tournament. “I’m at a loss for words, it reminds me of beating Serena on the same pitch,” said Cornet, who will face Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) in the next round. When asked about her age, she joked: “I’m like good wine. In France, good wine always ages well.”
The last player to reach Swiatek’s mark was Martina Hingis in 1997, whose streak also ended after 37 wins. The last time Steffi Graf remained unbeaten was in 1989 and 1990 (66 wins). “I wasn’t in my best shape so I knew this could happen,” said Swiatek, who is less fond of playing on grass. “Right now I’m happy with my streak, I’m glad I did it.”
More results on Saturday
In addition to Swiatek, Jessica Pegula (USA, WTA-9) was another top ten player on Saturday, she lost to Petra Martic (CRO) 2:6.6:7(5). Badosa, on the other hand, continued to play in the circle of favorites, beating Petra Kvitova (CZE-25) 7:5,7:6(4).
Meanwhile, Frenchwoman Harmony Tan continued her surprising triumph. The first-round conqueror of Serena Williams won 6: 1, 6: 1 in 51 minutes against the British Katie Boulter and reached the round of 16 for the first time in a Grand Slam tournament. “I still can’t believe it. It’s great,” said 24-year-old Tan. “It was really emotional in the first round against Serena. Today it was really good tennis, I don’t know why myself.”
Tan defeated Williams in their singles comeback after a year out through injury in the first round and meets Amanda Anisimova. In the end, the 20-year-old American won 6:7(4),6:2,6:1 against her compatriot Coco Gauff, who was two years younger. Gauff had always reached the round of 16 in Wimbledon and was considered a possible title contender at the French Open after reaching the final.
Source: Nachrichten
