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World No. 1 Iga Swiatek reckons she has made progress in her game since last year after steering Poland to the United Cup semifinal in Perth.
Swiatek, 22, beat China's Zheng Qinwen on Wednesday to make it two wins in as many games in 2024. After her compatriot Hubert Hurkacz won the tie's opening clash by beating Zhang Zhizhen earlier in the day, Swiatek's win gave Poland an unassailable 3-0 lead.
Poland completed a whitewash, with Piter Katarzyna and Jan Zielinski overcoming You Xiaodi and Sun Fajing in a match tiebreak to romp into the last-four for the second straight year.
After her win over Qinwen, Swiatek said in her post-match press conference that her hardcourt game is better than it was last year, giving her a lot of confidence:
"I feel like I'm playing well, and I make progress comparing to last year. I feel like I have more skills to play on these faster hardcourts."
Swiatek continued that she's taking it one match at a time and isn't yet thinking about the Australian Open:
"I just feel like I can really be in a good place physically and mentally. I'm just using on court."
She added:
"Obviously, every tournament is a different story. Grand Slam, it's always a little bit tougher, there's more pressure. I'm just thinking about finishing this tournament well, and we'll see what's going to happen in Melbourne."
Poland will have a rest day before they play the United Cup semifinals in Sydney.
"It meant a lot" - Iga Swiatek on the Polish support in Perth
Iga Swiatek is enjoying her time in Perth, notching up wins in both her singles matches as Poland made it back-to-back semifinals at the mixed team event.
Having made a slow start against Qinwen on Wednesday - falling behind 2-0 - the World No. 1 reeled off the next six games to draw first blood. The domination continued in the second set - with Swiatek dropping three games - as she sealed victory in an hour and 34 minutes.
About the rousing support in Perth on her first visit to the Western Australian city, Swiatek said in her aforementioned press conference:
"Well, that's my first time in Perth, so I had no idea how it's going to look. Honestly, I mean, I really appreciate it. I wouldn't say it's a surprise because anyplace I go, for sure, there are many Polish people that are coming and supporting us."
She continued:
"When I'm on individual tournaments, events like that, it's always great. I was happy that they came, and they supported us because it meant a lot, for sure."
Iga Swiatek had beaten Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-2, 6-1 in her first match of the new year.
