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After winning a Slam, a WTA 500, a WTA 250 in 2023, Iga Swiatek finally won a WTA 1000 this season. On Sunday, in the finale of the China Open, the Pole came through comprehensively against Liudmila Samsonova to win her sixth such title.
Swiatek won 6-2, 6-2 in merely nine minutes past the hour. Swiatek’s break point conversion was at 100%. She converted all four break points she had – twice in each set — to dominate her opponent. She also didn’t face any break point throughout the course of the match.
China Open: Iga Swiatek's wait for a WTA 1000 trophy ends
The four-time Grand Slam winner won all but four of the 27 first-serve points she put in. She also won 12 of 25 points on return on Samsonova’s first serve.
Against Rybakina, Samsonova was able to play her shots freely but Swiatek’s superior game made it nearly impossible for her to do so, on the second consecutive day. Swiatek also won 60% of her second-serve points and 50% points on return on her opponent’s second serve.
For the match, Swiatek finished with 21 points more than Samsonova’s 35. The China Open title round was the third time Iga Swiatek had made it this ahead in similar events. However, she’d not been able to get to the title on the previous couple of appearances.
Nonetheless, after Sunday’s win, Swiatek’s now won a sextet of WTA 1000 titles. Meanwhile, Liudmila Samsonova’s had to return empty-handed on her second career WTA 1000, making it quite a tough outing for her, despite all her determination to give her best.