Mutua Madrid Open Match Preview
It’s been a while since Iga Swiatek came to a clay-court tournament not looking like the overwhelming favorite to win the title, but the last few weeks haven’t been kind to the former world No. 1, who is coming off a quarterfinal defeat at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
Even before enduring a sixth straight loss to nemesis Jelena Ostapenko in Stuttgart, the five-time Grand Slam champion has appeared out of sorts since the Australian Open, where she lost in the semifinals. Swiatek is yet to reach a final this year and has opened up about the pressure of defending so many ranking points, ostensibly preventing her from contending with Aryna Sabalenka for the No. 1 ranking.
Still, the 23-year-old’s game is a natural fit for clay and despite an opening-round hiccup against Alexandra Eala, Swiatek avenged the Miami Open defeat and looked much more comfortable against rival Linda Noskova on Saturday. Standing between the defending champion and a return to the last eight is No. 13 seed Diana Shnaider, who has been struggling to back up a breakthrough 2024 season.
Shnaider made headlines when she hired former No. 1 Dinara Safina as her new coach and the lefty has been in fine form at the Caja Magica, dropping just three games in her first two matches. Swiatek may prove too tough a challenge for the 21-year-old, but it should be an interesting litmus test of where Shnaider’s game is at heading into Roland Garros. Winner: Swiatek—David Kane
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