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Iga Swiatek let out a vociferous celebration after beating Marketa Vondrousova on Friday to reach her first semifinal at the Cincinnati Open. The World No. 1 faced a stern test against Wimbledon champion Vondrousova, trailing 5-3. Vondrousova faltered under pressure, getting broken to love while serving for the set, having not faced a break point in four previous service games.
She broke back Swiatek for another opportunity to serve out the set, which went begging again, as a tiebreak ensued. The Pole dropped only three points there to draw first blood and wouldn't look back.
It was all Swiatek in the second, as she dropped only one set. She brought up victory in 91 minutes to send Vondrousova packing while breaking new ground in Cincinnati. It's her first semifinal at the WTA 1000 event and a tour-leading tenth of the year.
Swiatek celebrated winning the final point of the match with a chest thump as she improved to 2-0 against Vondrousova, having also beaten her at the 2020 Roland Garros.
Here's the video of the Pole's celebration on reaching the last four at Cincinnati:
Earlier this week, Swiatek beat Danielle Collins and Qinwen Zheng to set up a last-eight clash with Vondrousova.
The Pole, now 53-8 on the season, next awaits the winner of Coco Gauff and Jasmine Paolini on Saturday for a place in the final.
"I'm always focussing on the future and on my next goal" - Iga Swiatek after reaching Cincinnati quarterfinal
Iga Swiatek faced her sternest test of the week in the second round against China's Qinwen Zheng. Dishing out an error-strewn performance, the Pole dropped the first set for the loss of three games.
Swiatek, though, raised it up a notch in the next two sets, conceding only two more games, to reach the last eight. She's into her 72nd straight week as the WTA No. 1.
When asked about the significance of her achievement, Swiatek told Eurosport:
"You have to appreciate what you have achieved and be proud of it, it's good that I have people in my team to remind me of that sometimes. I'm always kind of focusing on the future and on my next goal, that's for sure. I'm really, really happy with the season that I'm having and obviously the previous one."
Having beaten Vondrousova in the last eight, Iga Swiatek is now only two wins away from her fifth title of the season, having won Doha, Stuttgart, Roland Garros, and Warsaw.
