Iga Swiatek has been critical of WTA rules regarding mandatory tournament appearances during her US Open run that was abruptly ended on Wednesday by Jessica Pegula.
The world number one was cruising, faultless, seemingly unflappable, until she simply wasn’t.
A rocky Olympic fallout for Iga Swiatek after missing out on gold, seemed to be behind her as she made the Cincinnati semi-finals in August.
Having lost to US Open favorite Aryna Sabalenka, Swiatek powered through her opening four rounds in New York with confident precision.
With Swiatek praising her serve after her fourth round win over Liudmila Samsonova, it swiftly came undone for the Pole, with the world number one winning just 56% of points on her first serve in her quarter-final.
Hitting 39 errors didn’t help much either as tears overwhelmed the Pole, while Jessica Pegula finally broke her unwanted streak of six consecutive grand slam quarter-final defeats.
Iga Swiatek reveals whether she will take time off after US Open exit
Pegula seems to be riding her luck slightly, with the world number six, whether by her own quality, her opponents poorer level, or likely a combination of both, granting her access into the late stages of events.
The world number one however has caused a bit of a stir with her off-court endeavours, with Swiatek calling out ruthless WTA scheduling that she says doesn’t take players’ welfare into account.
With this latest defeat coming amidst this ongoing dialogue, a reporter quizzed her on whether a break might be something she would consider.
Resolutely however, she responded that she would continue playing, with Swiatek set to headline the year-end WTA Finals event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“No, I don’t think it would make sense,” she said in her press conference. “If you are out of tour it is pretty hard to come back.
“I mean, I don’t want to take a break. It’s tough. It could be a bit easier but I am keeping up with the schedule, I am only talking about mandatory tournaments and there are rules about them. I am ready for playing until November unless I am going to get injured.”
Who does Jessica Pegula face next in the US Open semi-final?
In a rematch of her Cincinnati opener, Pegula is preparing to face off against the ever-improving Karolina Muchova, a previous US Open semi-finalist.
Returning from a 10-month stint on the sidelines after a wrist injury sustained at last year’s US Open, Muchova returned to the WTA tour in June and has since gone from strength to strength.
The former world number eight took the first set off Pegula in the mid-west, before a disciplined fightback from the American edged her through.
Their only ever match, Pegula revealed her thoughts on Muchova, admitting that she was a huge fan of her unorthodox game style.
Both compelling storylines, Pegula has the edge going into this one, however with Muchova’s unique style and varied game, a shock run to the final isn’t beyond the realms of possibility.
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