Iga Swiatek came on strong in the second set of her last-16 clash with Dayana Yastremska at the Dubai Tennis Championships, triumphing 7-5 6-0 to reach the quarter-finals. (More Sports News)
ܫHaving crushed Victoria Azarenka 6-0 6-2 in Tuesday's rain-delayed second-round match, Swiatek initially faced a tougher challenge against her Ukrainian opponent on Wednesday.
▨The 59-minute opening set featured four straight breaks between the sixth and ninth games, Yastremska twice getting the immediate break back after dropping serve.
🔥But Swiatek got the fifth break of the opener to love, and the second set was a different story as the world number two dominated with her consistent serving and powerful return game.
⛎The Pole converted her third match point when Yastremska's forehand fell long, wrapping up the second set in a quickfire 33 minutes.
🐈She will face either Mirra Andreeva or Peyton Stearns – who has already eliminated Ons Jabeur and Qinwen Zheng – for a place in the last four.
Data Debrief: Twenty up for Swiatek
෴Swiatek made little fuss about reaching her 20th quarter-final at WTA-1000 tournaments, reaching that milestone in just 33 main-draw appearances.
⛄Since the format was introduced in 2009, only Serena Williams (26 tournaments) and Maria Sharapova (29) have needed fewer attempts to reach 20 WTA-1000 quarter-finals.
💎Among all players to play at least two WTA-1000 competitions, Swiatek (60.2%) is one of just two players to reach the last eight on at least 60% of their main-draw appearances, alongside Williams (61.2%).
