Iga Swiatek edged past Danielle Collins to book her place in the semi-finals of the Paris Olympics. 

The top ranked seed was pushed all the way by her American opponent, but came through a third-set decider to win 6-1 2-6 4-1 after Collins was forced to retire. 

Swiatek asserted her dominance early on, racing into a 3-0 lead and remained in control for the rest of the first set, with Collins no match for the Pole. 

However, Collins started with a three-game lead of her own in the second set, looking a completely different player to the one who first stepped out on Court Suzanne Lenglen. 

The world number one did have two chances at 5-2 down to put the pressure back on her opponent, but Collins remained composed to take the game to a deciding third set. 

But Swiatek would find her rhythm once again, racing into a four-game lead as Collins took a medical timeout off-court. 

The American would emerge back on court to win her first game of the set but retired immediately after, handing the win to her opponent. 

Swiatek will continue her quest for a fifth success at Roland-Garros on Thursday where she will face Zheng Qinwen, who beat Angelique Kerber. 

Data Debrief: Swiatek marches on, just

Swiatek's love affair on the clay courts in the French capital continued, but it did not come without its nervy moments. 

Despite dominating the opening set, Collins was impressive with her serve, scoring seven aces in the contest compared to Swiatek's two. 

Swiatek's triumph saw her become the first Polish player in history to reach the Olympics semi-finals in the singles.

Iga Swiatek eased to the quarter-finals of the Paris Olympics as she beat Wang Xiyu in straight sets.

Swiatek, who has claimed four grand slam titles on the clay surface at Roland-Garros, continued her dominance on Tuesday as she emerged a 6-3 6-4 victor. 

Wang started the match confidently, moving the world number one around the court early on, but Swiatek found her rhythm, earning a decisive break point in the sixth game before cruising to the first set. 

The top seed managed to find a break in the opening game of the second set, but that lead proved difficult to maintain as Wang broke back instantly to take the next two games on the spin. 

Swiatek, however, broke for a 3-2 lead and held her serve in the following game, but Wang continued to put on the pressure, winning her next two games to level the game.

The Pole would find yet another break of serve in the ninth game and was able to hold out to secure her passage to the quarter-finals in the French capital. 

Swiatek will face Danielle Collins in the next round. 

Data Debrief: Swiatek fights off inspired Wang

While the scoreline looked comfortable for Swiatek, it was far from it on Court Philippe-Chatrier. 

In the opening set, Swiatek had 11 unforced errors compared to Wang's eight, while also hitting only nine winners. 

But in a game filled with break points, Swiatek showcased her ruthless streak, converting four and saving six of the eight she faced. 

Aryna Sabalenka defeated Danielle Collins 7-5 6-2 to set up yet another meeting with Iga Swiatek at the Italian Open.

Having defeated Collins en route to the final of the Madrid Open, which she lost to Swiatek, Sabalenka repeated the trick with a straight sets win over the American in Thursday's semi-final.

And the Belarusian's reward will be an immediate rematch with Swiatek.

The duo have met 10 times, including in Madrid earlier this month, with Swiatek winning seven times and Sabalenka claiming three victories.

This will be Sabalenka's first appearance in the Italian Open final.

She is the sixth player, along with Simona Halep (2017), Dinara Safina (2009), Serena Williams (2013), Ons Jabeur (2022), and Swiatek (2024) to have reached the final of both Madrid and Rome in the same season.

Data Debrief: Perfect record

Collins is the only player against whom Sabalenka has registered six wins without a loss in WTA events, while only against Maria Sakkari and Elise Mertens does she have more wins in her career in such events (seven each).

The final will mark the fourth meeting on clay between Swiatek and Sabalenka as world number one and two, equalling Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova for the most meetings on the surface as the WTA's top-two ranked players.

Aryna Sabalenka is through to her second Italian Open semi-final after a straight-sets victory over Jelena Ostapenko on Wednesday.

The Belarusian, who recovered from a lower back injury sustained in her previous match against Elina Svitolina, breezed through 6-2, 6-4 after just 72 minutes on the court.

Sabalenka broke her serve in the third and fifth games, with Ostapenko opening the door with two double faults, while a single break in the seventh game settled the second set.

The second seed almost let it slip with her only double fault but came back with two big serves to close out the win.

Sabalenka will face Danielle Collins or Victoria Azarenka in the semi-final on Friday. 

Data Debrief: Top 10

Sabalenka (10) has become only the second player to reach 10 or more WTA-1000 semi-finals since the start of the 2020 season, along with Iga Swiatek (16).

With Sabalenka joining Swiatek and Coco Gauff, it is the first time the WTA’s top three players have reached the semi-final at the same WTA event since Roland Garros in 2013 – excluding the WTA Tour Finals.

Sabalenka has spent the most time out on the court in WTA clay events in 2024, with this match bringing her up to 25 hours and 34 minutes.

Danielle Collins secured back-to-back tournament wins with a 6-2 6-1 victory over Daria Kasatkina in the Charleston Open final.

After winning the Miami Open last week, Collins earned her 13th successive victory in style as she dropped just three games in her latest triumph.

The American, who moved up to 15th in the world rankings, needed just 77 minutes to dismiss her opponent without facing a break point in the whole of the contest.

https://x.com/WTA/status/1777063713234702821

Collins said: “I had a lot of matches in Miami and I had a lot of matches here.

“I had, at one point in this tournament, two matches in one day, which is not easy to pull off. I don’t know if I’ve done that before as a professional. I feel like the last time I did that was like in 12-and-unders.

“So to be able to physically battle and push myself to a new limit gives me a lot of confidence. I’ve been so happy to be, obviously, playing at the level that I’ve been playing, but to be able to back it up two weeks in a row has just been fantastic.”

An emotional Iga Swiatek survived a major scare to defeat Danielle Collins and reach the third round of the Australian Open.

The world number one lost to Collins in the semi-finals in Melbourne two years ago and it appeared history was about to repeat itself when the American took a 4-1 lead in the deciding set under the roof on Rod Laver Arena.

But Swiatek responded with five games in a row to claim a 6-4 3-6 6-4 victory and set up a clash with Czech teenager Linda Noskova.

The Pole sobbed into her towel at the end of the match, and she said with a relieved smile: “I was at the airport already.

“I wanted to fight until the end. She played perfectly so I knew it would be hard for anybody to maintain that level. I waited for the mistakes to come. I’m really proud of myself because it wasn’t easy.”

Collins walked straight off court into the press room, where she revealed this will be her final season.

“I don’t really know exactly when (I will stop) but this will be my last season and I’m really looking forward to that,” said the 30-year-old, who also made the semi-finals in Melbourne in 2019 and reached a career-high ranking of seven.

“I have other things that I’d like to accomplish in my life outside of tennis, and would like to be able to have the time to be able to do that. Obviously having kids is a big priority for me.”

The semi-final loss was the only one of five previous meetings with Collins that Swiatek had not won, and she lost only one game the last time they faced each other in Cincinnati last summer.

The top seed edged a tight first set disrupted by a brief rain break but the aggression of Collins was troubling the top seed and the American, who also made the semi-finals here in 2019, won five games in a row to take a 5-1 lead in the second set.

She showed nerves, hitting four double faults as she failed to serve it out at the first time of asking, but she was rock solid on her second opportunity.

Swiatek found returns drilled back at her feet and she was staring at the exit door when Collins broke serve twice in succession to lead 4-1 in the deciding set.

However, the American tightened up with the finish line in sight and Swiatek came roaring back, clinching victory on her third match point with a backhand into the corner.

Swiatek applied strapping under her left knee at the start of the third set, but she played down concerns, saying: “I’ve been struggling a little bit with my knee since (the WTA Finals in) Cancun. I have ups and downs but it’s not like it affects my game. You don’t have to be worried.”

Iga Swiatek won the battle of the grand slam champions against Sofia Kenin to reach the second round of the Australian Open.

Kenin lifted her first major title here in 2020 before losing to Swiatek in the French Open final the same year but has struggled since with injuries and a loss of form.

The American remains a dangerous player, though, and knocked Coco Gauff out in the first round of Wimbledon last year.

She served for the opening set before Swiatek fought back to take it in a
tie-break, and the Pole was the steadier in the second to claim a 7-6 (2) 6-2
victory.

“For sure, it wasn’t the easiest first round,” said the world number one. “She played really well. I tried to find my rhythm, especially in the first set. I’m happy at the end of the set I could win the most important points.

“I’m happy that I am through and I could play a little bit better in the second set.”

Remarkably, Swiatek was the only player in her initial section of the draw not to have made an Australian Open final.

Next she will take on another American in Danielle Collins, who ended Swiatek’s best run in Melbourne so far by beating her in the semi-finals two years ago before losing to Ashleigh Barty.

That is Collins’ only victory in five meetings with Swiatek, who won their most recent match 6-1 6-0 in Cincinnati last summer.

“I can’t say that I have an easy draw here,” said Swiatek. “I’ll try to do my best. Danielle is a really good player. We played really tight matches. On the other hand, our last match, from the score, I had it under control.

“Every match is different. I’m not going to anticipate anything. I’m just going to be ready and we’ll see.”

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Collins was a 6-2 3-6 6-1 winner over former Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open champion Angelique Kerber.

The German is part of a quartet of mothers making their Melbourne returns along with Caroline Wozniacki, Naomi Osaka and Elina Svitolina having given birth to daughter Liana last February.

“It is for sure different to be back like this,” said the 35-year-old. “I think I’m open more than before, and also the other players are. I’m also more relaxed so I feel that they appreciate it and I think it’s nice to see so many moms are back on tour.

“It is a long way to be back and to play on a high level again. But, on the other side, I have the experience, I know how it is. I played so many grand slams over the years. So I’m more trying to find my rhythm, to being on court and feeling good again.”

There were also victories for two other former grand slam winners, with 18th seed Victoria Azarenka beating Camila Giorgi 6-1 4-6 6-3 and Sloane Stephens seeing off Olivia Gadecki 6-3 6-1.

Last week's Indian Wells Open champion Elena Rybakina has extended her winning streak to 10 matches after defeating Paula Badosa 3-6 7-5 6-3 in Saturday's Miami Open third round.

Kazakhstan's Rybakina, who is also the reigning Wimbledon Champion and Australian Open finalist, got the better of Badosa for the second time during her current run, also eliminating her from Indian Wells. 

The 23-year-old has to be considered one of the favourites to go all the way, having knocked off world number one Iga Swiatek and world number two Aryna Sabalenka to lift the trophy in California.

Rybakina will meet Belgium's Elise Mertens in the fourth round after she beat Croatia's Petra Martic 6-4 6-3.

Meanwhile, the biggest upset of the day was delivered by Russia's Anastasia Potapova, bouncing sixth seed Coco Gauff 6-7 (8-10) 7-5 6-2.

Potapova, who has never won a tournament above the WTA 250 level, will face China's Zheng Qinwen for a spot in the quarter-finals after her three-hour 5-7 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 triumph over Liudmila Samsonova.

Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko, the 24th seed, eliminated Brazilian 13th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-2 4-6 6-3, while 20th seed Magda Linette of Poland knocked out Belarusian 14th seed Victoria Azarenka 7-6 (7-3) 2-6 6-4.

Unseeded American Clare Liu went down 4-6 7-5 6-4 against Italy's Martina Trevisan, but third seed Jessica Pegula will continue to fly the flag for the United States after advancing 6-1 7-6 (7-0) in her all-American showdown with Danielle Collins.

Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff headlined a great day for the Americans at the Miami Open as they both advanced into the third round on Thursday.

Pegula, who is the second-highest seed remaining in the field after Iga Swiatek's withdrawal, had no issue dispatching Canada's Katherine Sebov 6-3 6-1 in just 66 minutes.

Gauff, the six seed, followed suit as she raced to a 6-4 6-3 win over Canadian Rebecca Marino in just 73 minutes.

Florida's own Danielle Collins thrilled her hometown crowd with a 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 triumph against Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova, and rising 22-year-old talent Clare Liu made it a perfect 4-0 sweep for the USA representatives by defeating Julia Grabher 6-4 6-3.

Last week's Indian Wells Open champion Elena Rybakina was made to work in her 7-5 4-6 6-3 win over Anna Kalinskaya, while an even more gruelling effort was required in Paula Badosa's two-hour-and-52-minute 7-6 (7-2) 4-6 6-2 result against Laura Siegemund.

The top seed to fall on Thursday was eighth seed Daria Kasatkina, as she won the first set before going down 4-6 6-2 6-2 against Elise Mertens.

Liudmila Samsonova, the 12th seed, made light work of Viktorija Golubic in a 6-1 6-1 drubbing, and 22nd seed Jelena Ostapenko prevailed 6-3 6-4 against Mirjam Bjorklund.

Ostapenko will next play 13th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia after she won a strange back-and-forth contest 7-6 (7-4) 0-6 6-0 over Tereza Martincova.

Former US Open champion Emma Raducanu enjoyed a winning return to the court on Thursday as she defeated Danka Kovinic 6-2 6-3 in the first round of the Indian Wells Open.

It was the 20-year-old's first match since her second-round exit in January's Australian Open, and she had to respond to some early adversity after Kovinic broke her opening service game.

But the Brit answered right back, rattling off four games in a row to take control of the first set, and the second frame was nearly a carbon copy, falling down 2-0 before putting together five unanswered games of her own.

Meanwhile, world number 31 Danielle Collins – the highest ranked player in the draw to not receive a seed – was a surprise early elimination as Hungary's Dalma Galfi got the better of her 6-4 6-4. As a reward, Galfi will meet world number five Caroline Garcia in the second round.

Nuria Parrizas-Diaz set up an all-Spanish second-round clash with Paula Badosa after beating Italy's Elisabetta Cocciaretto 6-3 7-5, but fellow Spaniard Rebeka Masarova fell short 4-6 6-4 6-4 against American Peyton Stearns.

It was a great day for the Czech Republic representatives, with Katerina Siniakova earning a 7-5 6-4 over Julie Niemeier, Marketa Vondrousova dominating Rebecca Marino 6-2 6-2, and Karolina Muchova completing the hat-trick against Yulia Putintseva 6-3 4-6 6-4.

As good of a day as it was for the Czechs, it was just as poor for the Italians, with Lucia Bronzetti falling 7-5 4-6 6-3 to Bernarda Pera and Jasmine Paolini eliminated 7-5 6-1 at the hands of Tatjana Maria, joining Cocciaretto on an early flight home.

Marta Kostyuk is through to her first WTA singles decider after defeating Danielle Collins 6-4 6-3 in Saturday's ATX Open semi-final.

Ukraine's Kostyuk prevailed in a closely contested battle against the highest seed remaining in the field, taking the only break of the first set after saving four Collins break points the game prior.

The two women traded breaks to begin the second set, but the 20-year-old Kostyuk was too strong down the stretch, winning five of the final six games.

It will also be the first WTA-level final for her opponent, with unseeded 22-year-old Russian Varvara Gracheva overcoming American Katie Volynets 6-4 5-7 6-4.

The two-and-a-half-hour clash was tight all the way through, with Gracheva only narrowly edging the total point count 101-94.

Meanwhile, down south of the border at the Monterrey Open, world number five Caroline Garcia won her semi-final against Elise Mertens 6-3 6-4.

The reigning WTA Finals champion will have a chance to collect the 12th singles title of her career, and her first of the season, when she meets Croatia's Donna Vekic in the final.

Vekic, the third seed, emerged the 7-5 6-2 victor against China's Zhu Lin, continuing a red-hot run of form that has seen her win 13 of her past 15 matches dating back to New Year's Eve.

Caroline Garcia is now three wins away from her first title of 2023 after defeating Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 6-3 6-2 in Thursday's second round of the Monterrey Open.

France's Garcia, the world number five and top overall seed, needed just 63 minutes to see off her Spanish challenger. She controlled the contest with her serve, taking the ace count eight to two while winning 75 per cent of her total service points (33-of-44).

She will now face Egypt's Mayar Sherif in the quarter-final after the seventh seed survived a tough 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 test from China's Wang Xinyu.

Fourth seed Elise Mertens emerged the 6-3 3-6 6-2 victor against Romania's Elena-Gabriela Ruse, while rising 22-year-old Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto prevailed 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-3) against Germany's Tatjana Maria.

North of the border in Austin's ATX Open, Danielle Collins ripped off a 67-minute 6-1 6-1 drubbing of Caty McNally to advance to the quarter-final.

Collins will meet Russia's Anna Kalinskaya next after the 24-year-old's convincing 6-3 6-1 victory over veteran CoCo Vandeweghe.

Eighth seed Marta Kostyuk is one of only three seeded competitors remaining after storming home in a 6-3 3-6 6-0 battle with Madison Brengle, and Germany's Anna-Lena Friedsam won the longest match of the day in a 7-5 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (10-8) three-hour war of attrition against 18-year-old Russian Erika Andreeva.

Iga Swiatek started the defence of her Qatar Open title by taking less than an hour to beat Danielle Collins on Wednesday.

Playing for the first time since she was knocked out of the Australian Open by Elena Rybakina in the fourth round last month, normal service was resumed by the domineering world number one in Doha.

The top seed brushed Collins aside in only 53 minutes, racing to a 6-0 6-1 victory to march into the third round.

Collins only won four points as she suffered the misery of a first-set bagel, an inspired Swiatek taking the opener in only 21 minutes.

Swiatek's run of games won was ended at nine when Collins got on the board at 3-1, but the Pole broke for a fifth time before serving it out for an emphatic victory.

The 21-year-old three-time grand slam champion, who made only six unforced errors, will do battle with Belinda Bencic for a place in the quarter-finals.

Bencic beat two-time champion Victoria Azarenka 1-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to take her place in the last 16, storming back from 4-1 down in the second set when she appeared to be on her way out.

Second seed Jessica Pegula saved two match puts as she dug deep to beat Jelena Ostapenko 6-2 2-6 7-5 to set up a meeting with Beatriz Haddad Maia, who beat Daria Kasatkina in straight sets.

Fourth seed Coco Gauff got the better of Petra Kvitova 6-3 7-6 (8-6), while Veronika Kudermetova and Maria Sakkari also made it through.

Belinda Bencic continued her impressive run of form this season with a straight-sets win over Viktoriya Tomova in the opening round of the Qatar Open.

The seventh seed triumphed at the Abu Dhabi Open last week to add to her Adelaide International 2 success from January and is now seeking another title in Doha.

Bencic eased to a 6-0 6-1 win against Bulgarian qualifier Tomova and will face two-time tournament winner Victoria Azarenka for a place in the quarter-finals.

Maria Sakkari also advanced on Tuesday, overcoming Zheng Qinwen 6-2 3-6 6-3, as did fellow seeded player Daria Kasatkina with a 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 win against Rebecca Marino.

Zheng may have suffered an early exit, but last season's WTA Newcomer of the Year produced the shot of the tournament with a winning tweener en route to taking the second set.

Petra Kvitova, another two-time winner in Qatar, defeated Zhang Shuai 7-5 6-2, while Danielle Collins beat Elise Mertens 6-4 7-6 (8-6) and will now face top seed Iga Swiatek.

Second seed Jessica Pegula will take on Jelena Ostapenko, meanwhile, after the Latvian proved too strong for Madison Keys in a 7-5 6-2 victory.