Swiatek survives Vekic scare, rallies to reach China Open last 16

Iga Swiatek overcame a set and two breaks down to defeat 30th-seed Donna Vekic 4-6, 7-6 (0), 6-2 at the China Open. The sixth-seeded Pole will face American teenager Iva Jovic in the round of 16

Beijing:  Six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek mounted a stellar comeback from a set and two breaks down to defeat 30th-seeded Donna Vekic in the round of 32 at the China Open here on Monday.

Swiatek had lost the first set 4-6 and was 2-5 down in the second, staring down the barrel. However, the Pole produced an epic comeback to win the match 4-6, 7-6 (0), 6-2 and storm into the round of 16.

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“I was just really pissed,” Swiatek told broadcasters following the win when asked how she felt after going a set down. “I thought I wasn’t playing bad, but for sure it wasn’t enough. I made some mistakes. I was just angry. I wanted to change something. Clearly, it wasn’t working. The beginning of the second set was tough. Later on, I figured it out. I’m really happy about that.”

Swiatek had lost her serve in the third game of the match and could not find a way to break Vekic. The eighth-seeded Pole eventually lost the first set 4-6. Her hopes of a comeback were in further trouble when she lost her serve twice in the second set to fall 2-5 behind.

However, she found her top game and broke the Croatian twice to level the set at 5-5. Both players held serve as the second set went into a tie-break, and Swiatek dominated it to clinch the set without dropping a point.

By this time, she had the momentum. Both players began the third set with a break of serve each, but the Pole got another break at 3-2 and did not look back. She held serve and broke Vekic again to take the third set 6-2 and complete an epic comeback win in two hours and 40 minutes.

Swiatek will now face Iva Jovic next. Jovic defeated Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1, 7-5 in her round-of-32 clash. But it would take some doing for the American to stop Swiatek, who was the 2023 champion in Beijing.