On a blustery Wednesday night in Cancun, World No. 2 Iga Swiatek defeated World No. 3 Coco Gauff on Day 4 of the WTA Finals.
Both were 1-0 in Cancun coming into the match.
Ready? Play 🎾@iga_swiatek | @CocoGauff | #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/fjZq9OQnqP
— WTA Finals (@WTAFinals) November 1, 2023
Gauff had an outstanding summer and fall.
One of the hallmarks of her summer was a huge victory over Swiatek (a career first against Iga) en route to winning the Western & Southern Open.
The confidence and momentum from winning that tournament carried her into the US Open and helped her grab her maiden Grand Slam.
Iga Swiatek v. Coco Gauff (2023):
🔹Dubai: Iga
🔹Roland Garros: Iga
🔹Cincinnati: Coco
🔹Beijing: Iga
🔹WTA Finals: ??— US Open Tennis (@usopen) November 1, 2023
In tonight’s match, Gauff lost in straight sets.
Iga Swiatek wins the 1st set 6-0 against Coco Gauff at WTA Finals.
1 set away from the semifinals. 🇵🇱 pic.twitter.com/AkwUGg981q
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 1, 2023
Iga Swiatek d. Coco Gauff 6-0 7-5
Ever since the US Open, Iga has been back to doing Iga things…
6-0 sets & win streaks.
✅8 match win streak
Back to business. 🇵🇱❤️ pic.twitter.com/c7SvgOUwUy
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 1, 2023
Errors were coming off every wing and on the Gauff serve, but the match got closer in the second set before the errors crept up again.
It was frustrating for fans to watch, and Coco was trying hard to keep her emotions intact.
Iga Swiatek after beating Coco Gauff at WTA Finals:
“Coco is the kind of player that she doesn’t give up. I knew it wouldn’t be that easy. The key is to focus in yourself. The conditions at the end got pretty tricky. I’m just happy I could survive…” pic.twitter.com/VkMIFujEOM
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 1, 2023
By her standards, Swiatek may consider her 2023 a disappointing one.
She won one Grand Slam (French Open) but lost the World No. 1 seed to Aryna Sabalenka after holding it for 75 consecutive weeks.
April 4, 2022 ➡️ September 10, 2023
75 consecutive weeks in her first stint as WTA World No.1 – the third longest after Steffi Graf (186) & Martina Hingis (80)
👏 @iga_swiatek 👏 https://t.co/2RwyTGGUSD
— wta (@WTA) September 4, 2023
Watch the WTA Finals on the Tennis Channel through Sunday, November 5.
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