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Iga Swiatek came back from two breaks down in the third set to avoid a shock loss to Danielle Collins before the American announced she would be ending her pro tennis career this year.
Swiatek seeded at No. 1, was on the brink of crashing out of the Australian Open in the second round but recovered to beat 61st-ranked Collins 6-4 3-6 6-4 in two hours and 57 minutes of play.
Swiatek, who was beaten by Collins in straight sets in the 2022 Australian Open semifinal, entered the match as the big favorite, considering that she has since established herself as the best player in the game and the fact that she beat the American in their three meetings after the 2022 Australian Open. But former world No. 7 Collins came to play and came really close to sending world No. 1 Swiatek packing from Melbourne.
After suffering a crushing defeat to Swiatek, 30-year-old Collins announced she would soon be putting the curtain on her career.
"This is going to be my last season, actually, competing. I don't really know exactly when, but this will be my last season and I'm really looking forward to that," Collins said in the press conference after the match.
How Swiatek defeated Collins?
The first to get a break was Collins, who went 3-1 up after taking Swiatek's serve in the fourth game. However, it didn't take long before Swiatek responded as the Pole broke Collins in the fifth and ninth games en route to overcoming the early deficit and winning the first set.
After winning the first set, Swiatek broke Collins in the first game of the second set. Just when it seemed Swiatek would likely cruise toward a straight-set win, Collins responded by breaking the Pole in three games in a row and winning the next five games for a 5-1 lead. Swiatek managed to save four set points in the seventh game and one more in the eighth game but still lost the first after Collins realized her sixth set point in the ninth game.
In the third set, Collins collected back-to-back breaks in the third and fifth games to open a 4-1 lead. Down by two breaks, it didn't look good for Swiatek, but the Pole delivered big time as she won the next five games to overturn the deficit and create an epic comeback.
In her next match, Swiatek plays against world No. 50 Linda Noskova.