Swiatek moves through to Beijing showdown with Gauff

Former No. 1 Iga Swiatek will try to end the longest win streak of the WTA season when she faces a Beijing semi-final against on-form teenager Coco Gauff.

The Polish world No. 2 is back on form after a flutter last month and showed her renewed potential in a 6-7 (8), 7-6 (5), 6-1 comeback win on Friday over Caroline Garcia which took well over two and a half hours.

Gauff won her 16th consecutive match as she ended the year-end Finals hopes of Maria Sakkari, defeating the Greek 6-2, 6-4 after losing to her four times from five previous matches

The win streak from the Cincinnati and US Open champion is the longest by a teen since the 17 of Bianca Andreescu in 2019.

Gauff remains formidable against her fellow Top 10 players, having defeated them in seven of eight recent meetings dating to last June.

Gauff and Swuatek will play for the ninth time on Saturday in the Chinese capital. The Pole won their first seven encounters in straight sets but went down to Gauff in August in a Cincinnati semi-final.

Gauff’s was unashamed to reveal she was untouchable during th4 match:

“It was definitely as comfortable as it looked, honestly. She’s a tough player. She came out with some great shots. 

“But honestly, when I stepped on the court… some days you just feel like no matter what’s going to happen, you’re going to win.

“It’s nothing to do with the opponent. It’s just like how you’re feeling. That’s how I felt when I stepped on court today.

“Today was just one of those days where I felt comfortable. It has nothing to do with how Maria played.

“When I woke up today, I just felt good. It’s a rare feeling as an athlete.”