Swiatek Challenged Again by Andreeva

INDIAN WELLS, THURSDAY—Iga Swiatek maintains her chances of winning the WTA 1000 Indian Wells tennis tournament for the third time. Meanwhile, Mirra Andreeva achieved her tenth consecutive victory. Now, the two will face each other, repeating their previous two encounters.

Swiatek secured the first women's singles semifinal ticket after defeating Zheng Qin Wen with a score of 6-3, 6-3 in the quarterfinals at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, California, United States, on Thursday (13/3/2025) local time or Friday (14/3/2025) WIB. The result served as a redemption for Swiatek's loss to Zheng in their last encounter at the semifinals of the Paris 2024 Olympics.

The defeat at that time marked the first for Swiatek after six consecutive victories against the Chinese tennis player. One disheartening aspect was that the loss thwarted Swiatek's journey to secure an Olympic gold medal, which was ultimately won by Zheng. Meanwhile, Swiatek earned the bronze medal.

They met again seven months later at Indian Wells, where Swiatek seized the opportunity to avenge her defeat. After her serve was broken only twice by opponents in the previous three matches, Swiatek's serve was broken twice by Zheng. This became her toughest match since starting the tournament in the second round after receiving a bye in the first round.

"After my serve was broken and everything that happened, I tried to stay calm. I worked to regain focus and am glad I was able to do so," said Swiatek.

In addition to successfully escaping pressure from her opponent, this Polish tennis player was able to overcome external pressures, namely strong winds. She adapted more quickly compared to her opponent.

The semifinal ticket brings Swiatek closer to the opportunity of becoming the first tennis player to win the WTA Indian Wells title three times. Since the tournament was first held in 1989, many players have won the title twice, but none have achieved more than that. In the 2000s era, players who won the title twice include Kim Clijsters (2003, 2005), Maria Sharapova (2006, 2013), and Victoria Azarenka (2012, 2016). As for Swiatek, she claimed the title in 2022 and 2024.

Swiatek has a factor that makes her comfortable playing in Indian Wells because the hard court in the arena located around the desert bounces the ball not as fast as other hard courts. The ball bounces high enough that many tennis players say that playing in Indian Wells is like playing on a slow clay court. And, Swiatek is a tennis player who has mastered the character of a clay court, as proven by her four French Open Grand Slam titles.

That comfort will be tested by Andreeva who is in top form. After appearing in the WTA 1000 Dubai tournament and winning, the 17-year-old continued her journey to Indian Wells. She extended her winning streak to 10 after defeating Elina Svitolina 7-5, 6-3 in the quarterfinals.

That win means nothing when we meet again here. Friday will be a new day, a new game, new conditions, a new country. Everything is different.

Andreeva, who has become more solid with her shot variations since being coached by former Spanish athlete Conchita Martinez, made 23 winners, twice as many as Svitolina's 11 winners. The victory over the senior tennis player who has competed in the professional tennis arena for 15 years was the 27th in Andreeva's career at the WTA 1000 tournament, the highest level in the professional women's tournament structure. That number is the most for an athlete under the age of 18, since the WTA 1000 was introduced in 2009.

Swiatek has faced Andreeva twice with her potential to become a world-class player, both times at WTA 1000 events. Despite her victory, Swiatek faced a tough fight against Andreeva in the quarter-finals of Cincinnati 2024. The five-time Grand Slam champion dropped the first set, but recovered to win 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.

The Andreeva who Swiatek met across the net in their next meeting, a quarter-final in Dubai in February 2025, was a player who had matured in both her game and her mindset. Andreeva defeated Swiatek 6-3, 6-3 and continued her run to the title.

"That victory means nothing when we meet again here. Friday (Saturday WIB) will be a new day, a new match, new conditions, and a new country. Everything is different," said Andreeva.

Australian Open champion Madison Keys also showed a solid performance. She won 6-1, 6-1 over Belinda Bencic by making 30 winners. Keys' opponent in the semifinals is Aryna Sabalenka, the player she defeated in the Australian Open final. (AFP)