Friday, 19 August 2022
Meet the JournalistsPremiumAucklandWellingtonCanterbury/South Island
CrimePoliticsHealthEducationEnvironment and ClimateNZ Herald FocusData journalismKāhu, Māori ContentPropertyWeather
Small BusinessOpinionPersonal FinanceEconomyBusiness TravelCapital Markets
Politics
Premium SportRugbyCricketRacingNetballBoxingLeagueFootballSuper RugbyAthleticsBasketballMotorsportTennisCyclingGolfAmerican SportsHockeyUFC
NZH Local FocusThe Northern AdvocateThe Northland AgeThe AucklanderWaikato HeraldBay of Plenty TimesHawke's Bay TodayRotorua Daily PostWhanganui ChronicleStratford PressManawatu GuardianKapiti NewsHorowhenua ChronicleTe Awamutu Courier
Covid-19
Te Rito
Te Rito
OneRoof PropertyCommercial Property
Open JusticeVideoPodcastsTechnologyWorldOpinion
SpyTVMoviesBooksMusicCultureSideswipeCompetitions
Fashion & BeautyFood & DrinkRoyalsRelationshipsWellbeingPets & AnimalsVivaCanvasEat WellCompetitionsRestaurants & Menus
New Zealand TravelAustralia TravelInternational Travel
Our Green FutureRuralOneRoof Property
Career AdviceCorporate News
Driven MotoringPhotos
SudokuCodecrackerCrosswordsWordsearchDaily quizzes
Classifieds
KaitaiaWhangareiDargavilleAucklandThamesTaurangaHamiltonWhakataneRotoruaTokoroaTe KuitiTaumarunuiTaupoGisborneNew PlymouthNapierHastingsDannevirkeWhanganuiPalmerston NorthLevinParaparaumuMastertonWellingtonMotuekaNelsonBlenheimWestportReeftonKaikouraGreymouthHokitikaChristchurchAshburtonTimaruWanakaOamaruQueenstownDunedinGoreInvercargill
NZ HeraldThe Northern AdvocateThe Northland AgeThe AucklanderWaikato HeraldBay Of Plenty TimesRotorua Daily PostHawke's Bay TodayWhanganui ChronicleThe Stratford PressManawatu GuardianKapiti NewsHorowhenua ChronicleTe Awamutu CourierVivaEat WellOneRoofDriven MotoringThe CountryPhoto SalesNZ Herald InsightsWatchMeGrabOneiHeart RadioRestaurant Hub

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.
Sport

Tennis: Iga Swiatek's 37-match win streak ends in Wimbledon's third round

2 Jul, 2022 07:00 PM5 minutes to read
Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball to France's Alize Cornet during a third round women's singles match. Photo / AP

Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball to France's Alize Cornet during a third round women's singles match. Photo / AP

AP

Top-ranked Iga Swiatek was unbeaten since February and sure seemed unbeatable, compiling 37 consecutive match wins and six consecutive tournament titles.

She's never quite been as comfortable on grass courts as other surfaces, though, and a mistake-filled overnight sent Swiatek out of Wimbledon in the third round with a 6-4, 6-2 loss to 37th-ranked Alize Cornet of France.

"I know I didn't play good tennis. I was pretty confused about my tactics," said Swiatek, a two-time French Open champion who has never advanced past the fourth round at the All England Club. "For sure, it wasn't a good performance for me."

It was not just the match's winner that was unexpected. It was also just how one-sided this 1-hour, 33-minute encounter was.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

"This kind of match is what I'm living for, it's what I'm practicing for every day," Cornet said. "It really drives me. I knew I could do it. Somehow, I had this belief."

No woman had won as many matches in a row as Swiatek since Martina Hingis also put together a run of 37 in 1997.

But right away, it seemed, this would not be Swiatek's day.

"I didn't know what to do," she said.

On a chilly, windy afternoon at No. 1 Court, she quickly fell behind 3-0 and of Cornet's first 14 points, nine came via unforced errors off the racket of the 21-year-old player from Poland. Only one came via a winner produced by Cornet herself.

Normally so crisp with her shots, calm with her demeanor, Swiatek was not exactly at ease in either sense. After one missed forehand return, she swatted the toes of her right shoe with her racket.

By the end, Swiatek had made 33 unforced errors — a whopping 26 more than Cornet. And Swiatek's strong forehand produced nine winners, only two more than Cornet amassed.

This is not the first surprising result Cornet has come up with at the All England Club. The only other time she reached the fourth round at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament came in 2014, when she eliminated major singles champion Serena Williams.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

"I have no words right now. It reminds me of the time I beat Serena on the same court, eight years ago exactly," Cornet said. "This court is a lucky charm for me."

When the match ended — appropriately enough, with Swiatek dumping a forehand into the net — Cornet raised her arms and smiled as wide a smile as can be.

Cornet is a 32-year-old who reached her first quarterfinal in 63 appearances at majors by getting that far at the Australian Open in January. Now she's a win away from getting that far again, facing unseeded Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia next.

"I'm like good wine," Cornet said. "Good wine always ages well."

Tomljanovic, a quarterfinalist a year ago at the All England Club, eliminated 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.

In a contest between two young Americans — and a rematch of the 2017 U.S. Open junior final — No. 20 seed Amanda Anisimova came back to top No. 11 Coco Gauff 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-1 at Centre Court.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

Gauff, who is 18 and lost to Swiatek in the final at Roland Garros last month, led 3-0 at the start, before the 20-year-old Anisimova's forceful baseline game eventually began to hold sway. Anisimova took that opening set to a tiebreaker, which she then led 4-1, but Gauff grabbed the next half-dozen points.

That could have been trouble for Anisimova. She didn't let it derail her. Instead, she kept taking control of groundstroke exchanges while also doing a fantastic job of handling Gauff's serve, which reached 123 mph Saturday.

In all, Anisimova won more than half of Gauff's service games and saved 10 of the 13 break points she faced.

After entering 2022 with a record of 11-23 in three-setters, Anisimova has gone 13-6 this season, leading the tour for the most victories in matches that go the distance.

When Anisimova closed out the victory, she dropped to her back on the court, covering her face with both hands, then rose to blow kisses to the crowd and wiped away tears.

Next for Anisimova is a match against Harmony Tan, who is making her Wimbledon debut and defeated Williams in the first round last Tuesday.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

Other women's fourth-round matches Monday will be No. 17 Elena Rybakina vs. Petra Martic, and 2019 champion Simona Halep against No. 4 Paula Badosa, who got past two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova 7-5, 7-6 (4).

A total of four American men are into the round of 16 at the All England Club for the first time since 1999 after victories Saturday by No. 11 Taylor Fritz and unseeded Brandon Nakashima. They join No. 23 Frances Tiafoe and No. 30 Tommy Paul, who advanced a day earlier.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Sport

Talanoa

Netflix doco revisits Manti Te'o catfish hoax a decade later

19 Aug 01:30 AM
Video

Hawke Bay footballer topped ESPN's plays of the day

Premium
Sport|Rugby

'Joy, despair and disbelief': How Rotorua rugby schoolboys stunned Hamilton

18 Aug 10:17 PM
Sport

Hawke's Bay footballer's wonder goal the top play on ESPN

18 Aug 10:11 PM
Sport

'It's sexual assault': Former NRL star banned after vulgar on-field act

18 Aug 09:17 PM

Most Popular

Watch live: Not over yet - Civil Defence warns of more heavy rainfall in Tasman area
New ZealandUpdated

Watch live: Not over yet - Civil Defence warns of more heavy rainfall in Tasman area

19 Aug 01:45 AM
Premium
Cecilia Robinson rejoins My Food Bag board amid 'deeply disappointing' share price
BusinessUpdated

Cecilia Robinson rejoins My Food Bag board amid 'deeply disappointing' share price

19 Aug 12:04 AM
Mid-air horror: Panic on Air NZ flight from LA as masks drop, emergency declared
New Zealand

Mid-air horror: Panic on Air NZ flight from LA as masks drop, emergency declared

18 Aug 10:55 PM

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.
About NZMEHelp & SupportContact UsSubscribe to NZ HeraldHouse Rules
Manage Your Print SubscriptionNZ Herald E-EditionAdvertise with NZMEBook Your AdPrivacy Policy
Terms of UseCompetition Terms & ConditionsSubscriptions Terms & Conditions
© Copyright 2022 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP