By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Thursday, May 2, 2024
Iga Swiatek owns sufficient weapons to fill her Tecnifibre racquet bag.
World No. 1 Swiatek is among the sport’s speediest gamers, possesses a hellacious topspin forehand, flat backhand and diverse serve.
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The top-seeded Swiatek’s most underrated weapon?
Swiatek is a champion compressor, says Madison Keys.
In the aftermath of Swiatek’s 6-1, 6-3 sweep of Keys in right this moment’s Mutua Madrid Open semifinals, the 2017 US Open finalist detailed the problem of going through Swiatek.
The four-time Grand Slam champion’s constant depth, mixed with the very fact she’s so expert hitting the ball on the rise, squeezes each house and response time for opponents.
“I think she doesn’t seem like she’s ever really going for that much, but I was also really impressed today with her depth and her shot placement,” Keys mentioned of Swiatek. “I mean, every single ball was basically an inch from the line, and you can’t really ever gain any court when that’s the ball that’s coming at you.”
Pinned behind the baseline by Swiatek’s topspin can pressure opponents to drag the set off too shortly and play low-percentage drives down the road, Keys mentioned.
Consequently, as Swiatek grows sharper, opponents error counts can pile up as they go larger.
“So I feel like she makes her opponents start going for a little bit too much in trying to do things that they don’t really have the ball for,” Keys mentioned. “I think, you know, you win a point or two, and you have to work so hard to do that or you have to play such a great point to win the point that it’s hard to consistently do that when every ball that’s coming back at you is, you know, it’s coming quick, it’s coming deep, it’s coming with good margin.”
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