Iga Swiatek says what she thinks about Victoria Azarenka after knocking her out in Dubai

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Iga Swiatek was looking to bounce back after suffering a tough defeat in Doha.

The world number two made the trip to Dubai, having endured a disappointing tournament at the Qatar Open one week earlier.

Swiatek lost to Jelena Ostapenko in the semi-finals, crushing her dreams of winning a fourth-straight title at the event.

The Polish star has never won the Dubai Tennis Championships, coming closest in 2023, as she lost out to Barbora Krejcikova in the final.

Swiatek was handed a tough draw for the year’s second WTA 1000 tournament as she faced off against a two-time Grand Slam champion.

After securing the win and booking her place in the last 16, Swiatek gave her thoughts on her opponent.

Iga Swiatek calls Victoria Azarenka a ‘legend’ after beating her in Dubai

After several lengthy rain delays, Swiatek beat former world number one Victoria Azarenka in straight sets, 6-0, 6-2.

Speaking after the match, she was full of praise for her Belarussian opponent.

“She is a legend,” she said.

“I have so much respect for her.

“Her career is outstanding and she is playing super good, I just wanted to be ready.

“We have played a couple of times so I was aware of how she plays, I was ready for everything.

“I am happy I was solid and in the zone.”

Swiatek extended her impressive record in WTA 1000 events with the win as she continues to ease through the early rounds of the biggest tournaments.

Since the format was introduced in 2009, no player has a better opening-round win % than Swiatek, at 90.9.

The Pole has lost her opener at WTA 1000 tournaments just three times so far in her career and hasn’t done so since 2021.

• 2020 Italian Open – Lost in 1R to Arantxa Rus
• 2020 Cincinnati Open – Lost in 1R to Christina McHale
• 2021 Cincinnati Open – Lost in 2R to Ons Jabeur

Swiatek was happy to have secured the win in tough conditions, as rain interrupted proceedings in Dubai.

“It has been a long day,” she said.

“I wasn’t expecting to play the night session but I am happy I had a chance as it was a nice atmosphere and I am happy I was ready and not confused with this wait.

“I think [I warmed up] four or five times, and then when it started raining pretty badly, I just stopped because there was no point.”

Iga Swiatek closes in on Victoria Azarenka’s WTA 1000 record with first-round win in Dubai

When Swiatek won the first set 6-0 against Azarenka, she took one step closer to surpassing the 35-year-old for a unique WTA record.

Azarenka currently holds the record for the most 6-0 [bagel] sets handed out in WTA 1000 events with 33.

It seems likely that Swiatek will surpass Azarenka before too long, and may well do so in 2025 if she continues to play as well as she has in recent weeks.

Will the rain return for Wednesday’s action at the Dubai Tennis Championships?

It doesn’t often rain in the Middle East, but as the saying goes, when it rains it pours.

Players experienced delay after delay on Tuesday, as defending champion Jasmine Paolini was forced to wait three hours to secure victory against Germany’s Eva Lys.

“Long day, but a win in the end,” she said on X.

“Great to get things going.”

Players shouldn’t have to worry about such problems on Wednesday, however, as forecasts predict 0% precipitation throughout.

Paolini will play Sofia Kenin, and Swiatek will take on Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska in the third round on Wednesday, February 19.