World No. 3 Iga Swiatek survived a second-set comeback from Anastasia Potapova to begin her 2025 Cincinnati Open campaign with a win.
Having secured the first set in under 30 minutes, dropping just one game in the process, it looked as if the Polish player would make light work of her Russian opponent but the World No. 45 fought back to make Swiatek work for her victory.
The 24-year-old won the second set 6-4 to take the match on Center Court and progress to a Round of 32 tie against Marta Kostyuk.
Speaking immediately after the match, Swiatek admitted it was “up and down” in the second set.
“I really wanted to be solid but pretty intense on the other hand and it was a little bit up and down in the second set,” she said. “But in important moments, I got my level up and I could close it.
“So yeah, for sure, you know, first match in any tournament is always tricky, and I’m happy that I’m going to have a chance to play another one here.”
Swiatek also took time to praise the refurbishments done to the venue since the last tournament, saying it allowed her to better prepare for the match.
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“It’s amazing to be back here, you know, especially coming back to much, much better facilities and everything is new, so I’m really enjoying it.
“It helps, because you can chill even before the match, there’s no like noise and too many people in one place. So for sure, it’s good for someone like me who likes it a bit quiet and to create my own space.
“So, yeah, I think for sure this tournament needed that, and I’m happy that they made such an amazing job just in one year to build all these facilities, because I never seen anything like it, and it’s just great.”
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